I never realized how bland my cooking was until my daughter and daughter-in-law moved in with me. Now that we share the cooking duties, we also bring our different styles of cooking to the table.
Even meatloaf isn't just plain old meatloaf anymore. Last night Julie cooked a wonderful meatloaf. She started with the basics that I use - hamburger, bread crumbs, eggs and seasonings. I would have stopped there. molding it into a loaf pan and slathering it with ketchup on top (I got that from my mother-in-law because my husband likes it that way).
But Julie didn't use a loaf pan - she used a deep cookie sheet, one of those air bake kinds and spread the loaf out about an inch-inch and a half thick. Then she placed a brown sugar rub on top before baking. It was really good and I think my husband has a new favorite meatloaf (after 34 years...).
Of course, Julie loves to cook with garlic. She went out and bought a garlic press when she first arrived here because I never owned one and hers was buried in a box somewhere. Since then we've had fresh garlic in almost everything - except dessert.
My daughter, on the other hand has lived in the south for the past ten years and her cooking reflects those tastes and styles. She has copied some of my recipes, like how to cook a turkey, but has also adapted recipes from the women of their churches in North Carolina. I never had "sweet tea" until my daughter started making it.
The point is, our lives would be incredibly "bland" without the seasoning influence of others around us. Each of us is a unique individual with different experiences, talents and stories to share. Our faith is enriched each time we listen to a missionary share about the life experiences of the people they minister to. Our spiritual experience grows each time we share our experience.
Variety truly is the spice of life!
Lord help me savor the flavor of the lives around me and to add a little spice of my own to the mix!
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