Longevity & Comfort
Dean and I were driving home from the grocery store yesterday.
Mentally, I was thinking through all of our purchases; the meat I had bought to replenish the freezer, the fresh fruit that my optimistic brain is drawn to, etc., etc.
We were just coming up 6th Ave East by the KFC and this thought crossed my mind.
"It's time", I thought.
"Time to tell him".
"No, that's just silly."
"TELL HIM."
Hmm. Umm. Okay.
"Dean", I said.
"Yes?" he replied.
"I like bananas," I blurted out.
And then we each went into a fairly long diatribe on the value of bananas.
Aren't we a pair of geeks?!! ;)
Seems we each agree that bananas are highly nutritious.....filling.....easy to eat......and a great example of comfort food.
Wow. It's taken us almost 17 years of marriage to have this discussion. Glad we got that conversation over and done with.
I know, I know. You are rolling your eyes over this inane conversation; probably by now, this inane post.
But there are a couple points to make here, besides the value of bananas.
There is something to be said about the comfort of a long relationship in which, sometimes, the most natural thing to talk about is......the appeal of bananas (pardon the pun). There's something to be said for being secure enough with each other that mundane things can be even mildly interesting. There's something to be said for someone sitting on the other side of the car who cares enough about you that even the silliest of conversations is okay with him; who lets me know with his patient listening that I'm still worth listening to.
We live in a world where pizzazz and fresh/hot ("fill-in-the-blank") is offered to us, as if all else has no remaining value. Disposable everything. Short term commitments. Do it while it feels good, then drop it like a hot potato mentality. You know, red is the new pink.
What was wrong with the old pink?
I, personally, want to live in a world where a 17 year old marriage is considered to be a young marriage. Where it's kept fresh and real, by being.....fresh and real.
And, some days, that might include talking about bananas.
Daily, I scroll through Pinterest, looking for a new thing to cook for supper. Lots of times, I find great recipes. More often than I care to admit, Dean and I enjoy a new recipe, but one or both of the boys cannot summon the will to say that they liked it OR they outright dislike it, enough that I regrettably don't pass the recipe on.
Today, we'll eat an old stand-by - it's comfort food for supper, baby!
There are a couple of things in my oven: first, I'm taking a meal to another new mom in the church - no special soup this time - it's roast chicken, mashed potatoes and carrots. I also have a sweet potato baking for a soup I've been waiting to try. There are also some chicken pieces for the same said soup - tomorrow's project.
And for ourselves (we had roast chicken last night) - I'm making Cabbage Roll Casserole, a comfort food from my childhood. Make no mistake, I came from a good Ukrainian mama who made the real cabbage rolls, too, but this was served when time was short. Same great flavor, half the work.
Cabbage Roll Casserole
1 lb hamburger
1 chopped onion
Scramble fry in a frying pan.
Add and mix well:
1 can tomato soup plus 1 can water
1/4-1/2 cup raw rice (not Minute Rice)
1 tsp salt, pepper to taste
In a greased casserole dish, add 3-4 cups shredded cabbage.
Pour hamburger/rice/soup mixture over shredded cabbage. Do not stir.
Bake at 325 F for 1 1/2 hours.
Today, I didn't have enough cabbage from a head of cabbage. However, I had a lot of bagged coleslaw mix - wow, that took some time off the prep time!
I wonder where your comfort lies? Or who it lies with? Something to think about.
Mentally, I was thinking through all of our purchases; the meat I had bought to replenish the freezer, the fresh fruit that my optimistic brain is drawn to, etc., etc.
We were just coming up 6th Ave East by the KFC and this thought crossed my mind.
"It's time", I thought.
"Time to tell him".
"No, that's just silly."
"TELL HIM."
Hmm. Umm. Okay.
"Dean", I said.
"Yes?" he replied.
"I like bananas," I blurted out.
And then we each went into a fairly long diatribe on the value of bananas.
Aren't we a pair of geeks?!! ;)
Seems we each agree that bananas are highly nutritious.....filling.....easy to eat......and a great example of comfort food.
Wow. It's taken us almost 17 years of marriage to have this discussion. Glad we got that conversation over and done with.
I know, I know. You are rolling your eyes over this inane conversation; probably by now, this inane post.
But there are a couple points to make here, besides the value of bananas.
There is something to be said about the comfort of a long relationship in which, sometimes, the most natural thing to talk about is......the appeal of bananas (pardon the pun). There's something to be said for being secure enough with each other that mundane things can be even mildly interesting. There's something to be said for someone sitting on the other side of the car who cares enough about you that even the silliest of conversations is okay with him; who lets me know with his patient listening that I'm still worth listening to.
We live in a world where pizzazz and fresh/hot ("fill-in-the-blank") is offered to us, as if all else has no remaining value. Disposable everything. Short term commitments. Do it while it feels good, then drop it like a hot potato mentality. You know, red is the new pink.
What was wrong with the old pink?
I, personally, want to live in a world where a 17 year old marriage is considered to be a young marriage. Where it's kept fresh and real, by being.....fresh and real.
And, some days, that might include talking about bananas.
Daily, I scroll through Pinterest, looking for a new thing to cook for supper. Lots of times, I find great recipes. More often than I care to admit, Dean and I enjoy a new recipe, but one or both of the boys cannot summon the will to say that they liked it OR they outright dislike it, enough that I regrettably don't pass the recipe on.
Today, we'll eat an old stand-by - it's comfort food for supper, baby!
There are a couple of things in my oven: first, I'm taking a meal to another new mom in the church - no special soup this time - it's roast chicken, mashed potatoes and carrots. I also have a sweet potato baking for a soup I've been waiting to try. There are also some chicken pieces for the same said soup - tomorrow's project.
And for ourselves (we had roast chicken last night) - I'm making Cabbage Roll Casserole, a comfort food from my childhood. Make no mistake, I came from a good Ukrainian mama who made the real cabbage rolls, too, but this was served when time was short. Same great flavor, half the work.
Cabbage Roll Casserole
1 lb hamburger
1 chopped onion
Scramble fry in a frying pan.
Add and mix well:
1 can tomato soup plus 1 can water
1/4-1/2 cup raw rice (not Minute Rice)
1 tsp salt, pepper to taste
In a greased casserole dish, add 3-4 cups shredded cabbage.
Pour hamburger/rice/soup mixture over shredded cabbage. Do not stir.
Bake at 325 F for 1 1/2 hours.
Today, I didn't have enough cabbage from a head of cabbage. However, I had a lot of bagged coleslaw mix - wow, that took some time off the prep time!
I wonder where your comfort lies? Or who it lies with? Something to think about.
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