Monday, September 15, 2008

Why I Love Cooking

Cooking leads to eating. Eating leads to tasting--or it should. Sometimes we just shovel something in. But when we cook, the enjoyment lasts longer and the effort creates the desire to sip, savor, and smell (a Dr. Bridell injunction). Tasting leads to appreciation. Appreciation leads to humility and warmth.

God created us to need nourishment. From the earliest times we have had to work for our bread. And there is something important in that process. Growing, Cooking, Eating, then Growing again.

Some of the most memorable moments of my life have been associated with food--at a table, on a bench or a blanket, or even standing up. Breakfast, lunch or dinner. At home or away. Consider your own happy mealtimes. When it comes to food and the enjoyment of it, what makes you happy?

Last summer Jane and I ate lunch together almost every day, often out on the deck in the glorious Seattle sunshine, talking easily about the simple things of life. Yesterday I cooked for 50 young singles who gathered around tables in our backyard--eating, talking, and some flirting. Their laughter tickled me as I waved away the smoke of the BBQ. This morning my husband and I ate our oatmeal pancakes while devouring the morning news. Happy times.

Food preparation is work. But think of the good that comes of it!

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