A Shard of Glass in the Collard Stew

No matter how much optimism we conjure at the beginning of the year—no matter how we hope and plan—something will go sideways. And that's okay.

Yesterday, like so many people across the country, my family gathered for a traditional meal of collard greens and black-eyed peas. I’ve begun cooking mine in an easy one-pot stew, along with tomatoes and ham. (Thanks for the idea, Mom!) It’s delicious.

As my teenage stepdaughter shoveled the last of her stew from her bowl, she paused and picked out some…