There's a verse in the Bible that states, "Go, eat your food with gladness, and drink your wine with a joyful heart, for it is now that God favors what you do." Ecclesiastes 9:7 I enjoy my food. I know that God created us so that we need food in order to live. But, He also gave us taste buds. Think about it. We could solve the problem of fueling our bodies without having the pleasure of tasting our food. However, we have taste buds, which in a small way, help us enjoy the process of fueling our bodies. Hmmm.. I'm not going to go all theological here, because frankly, it's not one of my strengths, and the simple explanation of God creating for us a built in way to enjoy food is good enough for my simple mind.
But, my love for food goes deeper than just enjoying the taste of good food. I enjoy the moment when my family sits down together, face to face, to have dinner and talk about our day. This quote says it best:
"One of the very nicest things about life is the way we must regularly stop whatever it is we are doing and devote our attention to dining."
I enjoy hearing the stories of our day. Sharing the funny stuff that happened. Listening to my son relate a story about what happened in one of his classes. What he learned that day. Watching my husbands face light up as he talks about how he was able to solve a big problem at work. Taking time to just be together. It is a beautiful gift, this thing called dinner. It is extra special on the evenings when we can linger, not rushing through the food or the stories.
I also love the friendships that are formed with others while dining together. There's a quote that says:
"If you really want to make a friend, go to someone's house and eat with them. The people who give you their food, give you their heart."
Our best friends in life are the people we dine with. You slow down. You relax. You can't help but share stories of your life. You learn about each other and from each other. You can sit down to dinner with people you have nothing in common with, and find common ground in food. We have met some of the most interesting people when we are traveling around the dinner table. I have had some of the most amazing, moving, life altering, discussions while at the dinner table with others. I notice that in the Bible Jesus seemed to "dine with people" a lot! I think there's something to this eating together thing.
So, you want to change your family dynamics? You want to know what is going on in your child's life? You want to grow closer to your spouse? You want to make friends? Try getting together for dinner on a regular basis. I'm not saying dinner is a fix all for every problem. Really it's the time together that helps in these areas. But, having good food doesn't hurt. One last quote,
"Life should always be like lingering over a good meal."
Where are the photos you say? Well, I wouldn't forget to put a few photos in. Here's a few photos of some of the very good meals we had at our house this week (at least, the ones where I remembered to take photos).
Hmmm.. dinner with some good friends this week. It included seared Tuna, Teriyaki Chicken with mango, pineapple and rice, with edamame, and fresh Ceasar salad.
Jeff had a work event one evening so my son and I enjoyed a simple meal of whole wheat macaroni with feta cheese, tomato sauce, and fresh basil.
Halibut in Chardonnay sauce, spinach salad, Caprese salad with homegrown tomatoes, basil, Mozzerella, basalmic vinegar glaze topped with the truffle Olive Oil we brought back from Italy.
I had some cherries I needed to use so I made a fresh cherry cobbler one night. It was so popular with my husband that he requested I make another one to take with us to dinner at a friends house this weekend.
Have a great, flavorful weekend!
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