Warm Connections {Day 12}: Gathering Around a Homemade Life
Molly Wizenberg was one of the first food bloggers I read back in 2006 when I started RE. Her blog, Orangette, in a way is iconic to me.
Molly said this best, in her book, A Homemade Life:
“When I walk into my kitchen today, I am not alone. Whether we know it or not, none of us is. We bring fathers and mothers and kitchen tables, and every meal we have ever eaten. Food is never just food. It’s also a way of getting at something else: who we are, who we have been and who we want to be.”
I often bring my mother into my cooking. How could I not? She taught me so much of what I know today. When she passed away, another beautiful woman came into my life, my dad’s wife, Ginny. (Dad, Ginny, my sister and me.)
Ginny does homemade just as good as mom did.
She brings the family together, binds and joins us together with homemade goodness every time we’re in their home. (View of the Table Rocks from their front room, in the beautiful Rogue Valley.)
Serving a family-style meal just says comfort.
Comfort comes from being who we are.
Being who we are comes from feeling free with the people around us.
The people around us bring warm connections.
And warm connections bring more feelings of love.
Molly Wizenberg has it right: Food is never just food. It’s also a way of getting at something else: who we are, who we have been and who we want to be.
When’s the last time you served a family-style meal around your table?
If you missed previous days to 31 Days of Warm Connections …
Day 1 (and 700 31 Day Bloggers): Secret Ingredient to Warmer Connections
Day 2: Bringing the Beauty of Autumn to Your Table
Day 3: Multi-Generational Pear Applesauce
Day 4: Canning Suncrest Peaches with a Friend
Day 5: How to Find Contentment
Day 6: Encouragement with Easy Pear Cobbler
Day 7: Bush’s Garbanzos, Chicken, and Quinoa Soup for a Sports Family
Day 8: More About Others
Day 9: Technology Versus People
Day 10: The Table Experience with Bush’s Beans
Day 11: Dreaming of Autumn Guests
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I’m greatful for my mom teaching me (often indirectly) the gift of hospitality. I had my husband’s family over for dinner tonight and neither sis-in-law either offered to help clean up or thanked us for hosting. While I wasn’t surprised about their lack of manners, I was surprised how little it bothered me. I didn’t have the dinner for me, I did it for my mother-in-law. She’s is always very grateful and happy when everyone gets together.
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If I’m not serving a meal family style I feel almost uncomfortable and just not right. That’s not saying that I serve family style meals every night. But w weird schedules lately I find myself eating something quick standing at the counter while my kids are eating their dinner. Not my ideal.
My favorite meals are family style. It’s how I grew up at the table, and you are right, it’s comfort.
What a wonderful view from your father’s home… Dear ladies living in America, please notice and cherish the beautiful open spaces, mountains and lakes you have over there, us in European cities are jealous of those things ;))
Love the stemware in your table picture. Do you know what they are and the source?