True Beauty

Ever since I was a little girl sitting at the "kids table" at big family meals, I always cherished the moment when dinner was over and the good conversations were getting underway. In our family after a meal, the kids could go play but I always preferred to find a chair at the "big table" to be a part of the conversation.


Sometimes the conversation was about something in the news or an event going on in town. But mostly, the conversations revolved around old family stories. I could sit and listen to my family talk for hours. Even if I had heard the stories a million times, I stayed in my seat soaking up the laughs and the memories. My most dreaded time was when someone got up to clear their plate or check the score in the game. I always feared that the conversation would end. 


The other night, a really good friend brought over a dinner and keep me company while Kim is away. We enjoyed a wonderful meal with a beautiful view of the dogwood with its leaves turning as Fall approaches. I hadn't realized the value I place in the crucial element of a meal until I was missing that part. Meals are special because you share it with someone. I was reminded of that while enjoying the wonderful conversation that naturally flowed from one topic to the next and back again. 


I now realize that so much of what I enjoy about a meal is not only preparing it, but about the conversations that surround it. The conversation is the essential part -- the butter to the bread.

New and Good 

Realizing that the true beauty of a meal is 

not in the making or the eating, 

but in the sharing.