What the hell is a gravy boat, anyway?

I’ve heard no shortage of boat metaphors recently. There was the “we’re experiencing some headwinds” comment or the “it took the wind out of our sails” complaint. I’ve heard someone mention something lovely about “two ships passing in the night”. Then there was the notion about how “rising tides lift all ships”. Recently, I even suggested we “fire a shot across their bow” when referring to marketing against competitors. Then I heard someone reference the “gravy boat”. While those earlier mentioned euphemisms make some sense on their own and within the context of how they’re used, I find myself struggling with the gravy boat.

What the hell is a gravy boat, anyway? I mean, I get it. It’s a small vessel designed to hold a liquid that can then be poured wherever you point it. But, if it’s a “boat” of some kind, why would you fill it with liquid? Shouldn’t it float on gravy and not be filled with it? You wouldn’t fill a cruise liner with ocean water - at least not deliberately or with passengers on board - would you?. Filling a boat to the brim with liquid violates the most fundamental function of a boat in the first place.

Yet, millions of these peculiar things are purchased every year - mostly for unsuspecting newlyweds. They typically sit in the back of a closet or cabinet and only see the light of day on holidays or when the “giver” of said item comes over for dinner for the first time.

It turns out, the gravy boat is also known as a “sauce boat” - which still doesn’t change the fact that it’s not a boat at all. As I suspected, it’s actually a small pitcher that someone in late 17th century France thought looked like a boat. Now, I’m no expert on 17th-century French ship design but I think it’s a bit of a stretch. I think it looks more like a magic genie’s lamp. Still, I’m not sure a magic gravy lamp is a better naming option. In any event, it’s been called a gravy boat for about the last 300 years and nobody’s given it a second thought.

And that brings me to this loosely connected question. Are you guilty of this same thing? Do you do things just because it’s how you did them before or because it’s the way you’ve always done them? Have you ever stopped to evaluate if that’s still the right thing to do or the best way to do it? Do you look past those legacy behaviors and consider new or different ways to do things?

Well, that’s my challenge to you this week. Look around at the things you’re doing and the ways you (or we) are doing them. Is there a different, better, alternative way to do those things and accomplish the goal? Just because it was a good idea when we thought of it, doesn’t mean there isn’t a better way to do something today. Don’t be afraid to rock the (gravy) boat!

SIDE NOTE: If we’re ever eating together and I ask you to pass the “fancy serving cup with the saucy stuff in it”, would you please just pass me the gravy boat?