Food for the mind, soul, and "innerds"

I come from the South. I mean, waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay down deep in the South in the bottom of Mississippi from a town that I can bet you have never heard of. I am very proud of my "Southernness." While we get a bad rap for a few a lot of things, we do many well. One of those is hospitality. We love cooking. We love talking. We love hosting. We love talking. We love story telling into the wee hours of the night. I definitely have this in me.

For a little over a year, my girlfriends and I have gathered once monthly to cook and eat together. We all cherish this monthly occasion. Each month, someone different hosts the night at her house. We all show up to discover the theme and we are all assigned to a "station." Together, we cook an array of recipes that we may never otherwise try on our own. When everything is ready, we sit down together at the table and eat. I love the conversation over the stirring and chopping, the laughter as we "amend" the recipe with extra butter or spice, and the learning as we teach each other certain culinary skills. It's intimate and beautiful. We love and we learn.

For the longest time, I hosted parties all the time. Then as I grew older and most of my friends began to buy their own houses, I began to shy away from having people over. Lately, this has been on my mind with the "push" to do community together at my church. For a few years, I've said that I want a modest [or small even] house "one day" that is just right for hosting. I've yearned for it. So much hinged on the future dwelling. Everything can be small except one space where I can squeeze people in for meals, games, conversation, etc. As I've begun thinking of what is missing lately, it dawned on me that it is hosting. I've been waiting for a "one day house." I have been sometimes embarrassed of the lack of my own place compared to friends [the joys of being in your 30s and single in a place with overpriced real estate]. Maybe I felt that marrieds didn't want to spend a Saturday night with the singles? Really though, I've just been missing opportunities for community. For what?!

As this was on my mind, I ran across this book called "Bread and Wine" on a few bloggers' sites. I googled amazon-ed it, and this is the description:

As a follow up to her two bestselling books, Bittersweet and Cold Tangerines, author and blogger Shauna Niequist returns with the perfect read for those who love food and value the community and connection of family and friends around the table. Bread and Wine is a collection of essays about family relationships, friendships, and the meals that bring us together. This mix of Anne Lamott and Barefoot Contessa is a funny, honest, and vulnerable spiritual memoir. Bread and Wine is a celebration of food shared, reminding readers of the joy found in a life around the table. It's about the ways God teaches and nourishes people as they nourish the people around them. It's about hunger, both physical and otherwise, and the connections between the two. With wonderful recipes included, from Bacon-Wrapped Dates to Mango Chicken Curry to Blueberry Crisp, readers will be able to recreate the comforting and satisfying meals that come to life in Bread and Wine.

This is what Amazon states is inside the flap:

This is what I want you to do: tell someone you love them, and that dinner's at six.

Bread & Wine is a collection of stories about life around the table--about family, friend- ships, and the meals that bring us together. It's about Bacon-Wrapped Dates and Mango Chicken Curry and Blueberry Crisp. It's about the ways God teaches and nourishes us as we nourish the people around us. It's about recipes, entertaining ideas, and meals to share with friends and family, made by hand and with love.

Many of the most sacred moments in my life, the ones in which I feel God's presence most profoundly, when I feel the goodness of the world most arrestingly, take place around the table. Something extraordinary happens when we slow down, open our homes, look into one anothers' faces, and listen to one another's stories around the table.

This is my love letter to life around the table.  

 

I decided to order the book for my own consumption. Then it hit me. HOST. I know the Bible has many scriptures related to "breaking bread" together within community. Dining together was/is intimate and important.  I sensed the urging to host and share this book and experience. It doesn't matter the surroundings, a rented home or owned. The table setting need not be perfect. The dishes do not all have to match. The serving ware does not have to be top notch. Plasticware could even be used [gasp!].  The point is to gather friends AND acquaintances--no matter the age or life stage. Set up stations for cooking, learning, and laughing.  Create. Dine together. Talk about the book and whatever topics the chapters lend. Love one another.

So, I'm doing it. All I needed was the gentle urge in my spirit. I've learned that those urges lead me into uncharted territory full of adventure and depth. I'm in the processing of figuring out the "who." The "what" is to spend 4 months, meeting one time per month, cooking, eating, and talking together where I live. Eating on my mismatched plates if need be. Drinking [Trader Joe's?] wine from Target wine glasses. Hosting even if it's "messy." I'm too excited for the possibilities not to.

But, the question is: Will YOU?

Go check out buy Bread and Wine NOW!