Food for the moment or for a lifetime?

This morning I am heading out for the day and know I need to prepare supper, the evening meal.  Supper is what my mother and father ate at 5:30 pm everyday.  Dinner was at noon and often consisted of roast beef, potatoes and gravy flanked with vegetables.  A hearty meal to sustain the farmer mid-point in their day.  Milking was a morning chore and the balance of the day was spent working the farm so that the milking task was supported.  All chores centred around a whole.  The kitchen was very much a part of this whole.  Meals were sustain-ance for the hard working folk involved in farm life.  In summer fresh produce was grown, "blanched" and then frozen for future use.  Root cellars were filled with root vegetables and cold rooms were home to preserves and canned items.  What happened?

This morning I am heading out for the day and know I need to prepare for supper, the evening meal.  I have people depending on me as part of my partnership to prepare food.  It is the team effort I am living right now.  A team effort that is spiritual, physical, mental and emotional.  All important parts of the whole.  I was on Facebook and saw this picture:

Looks good but is not practical for supper for a growing family and I don't have the time or the ingredients.  Instead, I took an onion and cut it up.  Then out of the freezer I pulled a lovely roast loin of pork that I bought on sale for $8.23 which is lean and low fat.  I placed the frozen piece of meat on the cut up onion in the bottom of the crock pot which was once my mothers.  I cut up two potatoes, half of a sweet potato, one third of a turnip and two carrots.  I added two cups of chicken juice (broth) and two cups of water, a little salt and pepper and put on the lid.  I turned on the crock pot to high to get a start while I shower and prepare to leave for the day.  Before I go I will reduce to low this less than $10 collection of food which is ready to cook for the day and know when my family comes home in my absence tonight there will be a hot, healthy meal ready to serve.  All in all this preparation took me less than 15 minutes.  A divine meal full of love in less than 15 minutes.  A sacred time for my family to know I love them even when I am not here.  A low cost and low fat meal taught to me by my farm wife mother.

Often we seek the decadence of the chocolate lasagna only to find emptiness and a sugar high.  Often we seek love in the foods that are not a healthy choice.  Our soul needs food for a lifetime not just to satisfy our momentary cravings.  Family is where we grow and learn to be present to our spirit.  In our fast paced, fast food world we loose touch with the person who takes the time to work part of the puzzle which is so important.  The role of love through food preparation and feeding ourselves the love of supporting partners and family members.  The chores of our mothers and grandmothers were of the utmost importance to family life.  On the farm everyone worked together to survive.  Start your own farm .... support your family and be in relationship with the divine role of food for the soul.   Get back to basics and find more than you realize you have lost!