Come to the Table

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When you’ve been on the planet as long as I have, certain puzzle pieces begin to start clicking into place. One piece that has recently slipped into place for me is that life is full of green pastures where we get to lie down and quiet waters where we are led, as well as times of walking through the Valley of the Shadow of Death. But you never get to stay in one place for too very long. Life keeps happening, and things keep changing, and the journey goes on. But if Jesus continues to tarry in regard to his second coming, there ain’t a one of us who’s getting off this planet alive. So, in the meantime, as our Good Shepherd continues to lead us in paths of righteousness, why not celebrate our life, our journey on the little blue ball called Earth? The twenty third psalm says that in the midst of David’s life, the Lord prepared a table for him. Is there anyone you’d rather have prepare you a table?

The Big Bison and I have some friends in this area that we have known for over twenty years. That number astounds us. Flabbergasts us. How did this HAPPEN??? When we met in the 80’s, our hearts were young, our eyeliner was dark (those of us of the female persuasion), and our hair was BIG (either gender qualifies here). But the core things that drew us together initially have remained the same: our love for the Lord Jesus Christ, and our love of music.

So the Big Bison got this grand and glorious idea that we should invite some of our dear friends from “the early years” for a reunion of sorts. To celebrate life. The four guys met when they all worked at the same music production house. At that time, we were all newleyweds. Only one of us had a baby. The rest of us were hoping that maybe someday that might happen for us, too. Since that time, five babies have been added to our numbers, two of those adopted. We have lost babies to miscarriages, and parents to disease. One of us has survived breast cancer, and one of us is missing a gall bladder. One of us has lost all hair, only to have it grow back in, and one of us has lost all hair for good, may it rest in peace. Some of us have lovely salt and pepper hair, and some of us are fighting the good fight with chemicals to deny the presence of our gray hair. Most of us are sporting a few more pounds, and a few more wrinkles. Over all, I’d say we have lost quite a few inches in hair height and hair length (the guys, especially). But praise God, the love for the Lord yet remains, and the marriages are intact. And you know what? In this day and age, that alone is worth celebrating!

What, oh, what to cook for these honored guests? My dear husband likes my lasagna, and he suggested that it would make a nice dinner, so with a loaf of rosemary bread and a green salad, that should put us in business, yes?

Well, not so fast. We have a family of four, so I’m not used to cooking in quantity, and we would be having a total of 11 mouths to feed, mostly adults, and I began to think that one pan of lasagna might not be sufficient (it barely was). What to do? Kill off a little of that appetite with an appetizer. So then, I asked myself, what would a nice Italian girl serve with her lasagna? An antipasto! Hmmm… never made one of those before…. No matter! I have epicurious.com as my trusty friend and culinary advisor.

And what for dessert? Well, one of my guests has a strong passion for chocolate, and the darker and richer, the better, so just some ice cream with homemade hot fudge sauce should seal the deal nicely.

I took a picture of the antipasto before the guests arrived, so I can offer you that visual aid. But with the joy of the arrival of our guests, food pictures were forgotten, so I can’t show you a picture of the lasagna or the ice cream sundaes. You’ll just have to trust me when I tell you that they were delicious.

I’ll try to give you recipes in my next post.

Just wanted to ask you if the Lord might be nudging you gently to prepare a table for some precious ones you love? Offering what you’ve got – even if it’s a pot luck where everyone throws in – coming together for a meal – is one of the most beautiful ways that we can share and celebrate the life that we’ve been given.