The Simpsons Oatmeal and Love: A deeper meaning

What does The Simpsons, oatmeal and love have in common?

As with all things in life: the joke has it.

In this case, a joke from the Simpsons.

Now, like the rest of you, I expend the majority of my thinking time devoted to The Simpsons. In particular “the golden age” approximately season 2 to season 10.

The episode I’m referring to is Homer’s Triple Bypass. Homer, spoiler warning, is having trouble with his heart.

Marge, the ever dutiful wife, tries to help out Homer but cleaning up his diet.

Marge makes Homer oatmeal, and the following scene happens.

You may think it’s a quick joke about how Homer will eat anything.

I see it differently. There’s a chance that I am reading too much into this but bear with me, please.

There’s more to the quick cuts than meets the eye. The reason I think of this gag more than is healthy. The reason it keeps popping back into my mind is that it perfectly sums up what love is.

Homer doesn’t like oatmeal. He’ll look for any excuse to not eat it. He sees the bug and uses that as an excuse to dump it out.

Homer likes bacon. Bart points out there’s a bug in the bacon. Homer doesn’t care and keeps on eating. He’s not going to let something so small as a bug ruin a good thing.

Is that not what love is?

When you love someone, you’ll overlook the imperfections. When you don’t, they seem all the more prominent.

To put it in the most simple terms possible. When you love someone, you don’t mind the bug. When you don’t all you see is the bug.

What you tolerate in someone you love would infuriate you if it were someone you didn’t.

When it comes to the imperfections of the ones you love: It’s not a bug; it’s a feature.