Please join us for our next Shared Meal taking place on Sunday, August 20th!  The Shared Meal is a time when LCR members host and share a meal with members of our community who are experiencing food insecurity and/or homelessness.   This month we will enjoy a chicken dinner (all types of chicken), side dishes, rolls and dessert.  Set up begins at 2:30pm with the meal being served at 4:00pm.  ALL ARE WELCOME to join us to help prepare and serve the meal or provide hospitality by eating dinner with our guests and engaging in conversation.  A sign up sheet is located on the bulletin board on the ramp leading to fellowship hall.  Please bring a dish to share if you are able. If you have any questions, please contact Diane Casey at ( 215) 595-5623  or via email at [email protected].

Growing And Growing And Growing...

 

So I have always said, I have few talents, but I am a very good cook, and it's something I love to do.   I am always trying out new recipes, I'm sure to the more than occasional dismay of those who most often have to eat what I serve, namely, husband, son and daughter.   And therefore, I am always pleasantly surprised when someone actually likes what I make!  

 

Summer is the time for salads and I'm always on the lookout for something different (although I do have a bunch of favorites).   One new salad I made this year was a chickpea salad, with chopped bell peppers, onions, and garlic, dressed with oil and vinegar.   And in a fit of "oh dear, we have a lot of cabbage, I went overboard when I bought that...Jim can you please pick up some coleslaw dressing on your way home?", I chopped up the cabbage, and simply poured on the dressing for some quick slaw.   After I came to that night, (having passed out when Daniel gobbled up the cole slaw and said, "This is really good!"), I mentioned to him that I was a bit surprised that 1) he liked not only the cole slaw, not being a huge cabbage fan... but 2) that he absolutely loved the chickpea salad, because frankly, other than the chickpeas, he really didn't like the other things that were in it.   He replied - and I quote - "I think your stuff is growing on me."

 

Well.   If that wasn't the right thing to say to me, I don't know what is!   I was so thrilled, not only because it's always rewarding when you put in the effort that someone likes your food, but that Daniel was eating something nutritious!   Anyway, enough about food.      

 

I have realized something about myself recently, but also realized that it's not a new thing (although the example I thought of from long ago has now escaped me.)  I do not want to take opportunities away from my kids.   I am sure there are limits to how far I will go with this of course, but in general, I want to make sure that if they are interested, they take advantage of their opportunities.   I do not want to say "no", just because it would make it easier for me.

 

For instance, Daniel was invited to a soccer camp for one weekend early in June.   It was 4 or 5 hours away, and it was not cheap.   But I just knew that he would love it, and really get a lot out of it and that it would really be a rewarding experience for him, so I strongly encouraged the powers that be to move forward with it.   Being so far away meant that Jim would have to drive him up there by himself, because I had to stay home with Megan for her weekend softball games, not to mention I was singing in a concert that weekend too.  It didn't make sense for Jim to come all the way home, just to turn around to drive back to pick him up, so he was away for the weekend and I had to do some logistical finagling to get both Megan and myself where we had to be, relying on the kindness of Megan's teammate's parents and asking a favor of my sister.

 

Another example is when Megan was invited to be on the softball district All-Star team this summer.   This was one of those things where, not only was there practice 6 days a week, but if you win one tournament, you move on to the next one, with the ultimate end in sight sometime in August, just about the time Daniel would be starting up again with soccer.   Did it wreak havoc with our vacation planning?   It absolutely did.   Do I feel that when you are not in this situation, it is easy to say, family vacation is more important than playing some silly game, so we should not plan around what may or may not happen?   Yes I do.   But, when I looked at the joy on Megan's face when she was practicing or playing the sport that she loves and just saw how happy it made her, I just could not take that opportunity away from her.   And I was so glad that we didn't.

 

(As a sidebar, since this is really not part of this story, in the end, her team won the first tournament but lost in the second one, allowing us to grab the one campsite left, on the week we had available to go to Maine, so all ended up working out well.   And even if it hadn't, I wouldn't have done things differently.)

 

Oh, I just remembered what my long ago example was!   I'm so glad that I got seasonal passes to Sesame Place when the kids were young and that I wasn't just lazy and said, oh I'll do that next year.   (I do that enough anyway!)   We don't go there anymore, and I'm glad that I took the opportunity to enjoy the local amusement park while the kids were young.

 

Ok, my point.   Once again I can only hope.   I can only hope that "my stuff" continues to grow on Daniel and Megan, and I'm not only talking about food, although that's good too.   I hope that they continue taking advantage of opportunities that are presented to them and that it becomes a lifelong approach.   I can only hope, and keep encouraging them.