Food obsession?
I just tossed it out there, to the all knowing (ever watching) facebook world:
“What’s for dinner tonight?”
You should try that sometime! I received SO many responses and great ideas.
A few favorites:
cold cereal
penne with a vodka sauce and chicken (inspired me to make it the next night)
ice cream
Grandma’s Swedish meatballs, (gluten and dairy free!)
a family size charcuterie board
cold cuts and frozen veggies -okay that one was weird.
Why are we so obsessed with food?
We take pictures and post them to social media sites. SO MANY.
We talk about our food with co-workers the next day.
We discuss what we might eat tomorrow night, while still gathered at tonight’s table.
We speak blessings and gratitude over food before consuming it, (or we should).
We organize much of our time and activities and purchases and energies around a basically utilitarian task.
Shelves are lined with tattered and splatter-edged books of instructions.
Magazine subscriptions renew annually filled with trending foods. Yes, that’s a thing.
Entire monstrous media sites are driven by our drivenness to explore and save new methods, combinations, flavors, and appearances of food. Question - ?How many of them do we return to and actually make?
Why are we so obsessed with food?
The dishes, linens, centerpieces, flatware, candles, and music all circle around the food we will eat, bowing and fulfilling their roles to enhance, hold, and glorify meat, vegetables, bread, sauces, herbs and aromatics. Stores are filled with these secondary, nearly inessential accompaniments.
Gadgets and tools and small appliances promise a revolution to our culinary experiences. Time savers and time takers. Kitchens fill with more and more of these peripheral “necessities”, some only pulled out of the cupboard once or twice a year.
Why are we so obsessed with food?
Scientists, doctors and authors tell us what we should stop eating. Or start eating. Entire religious movements are formed and followed by the devout believers. Weight loss, pain relief, improved concentration, strong bones, clear skin, smooth skin, young skin, muscle mass, healthy hearts, increased stamina … so many promises!
I haven’t even started on the plethora of establishments that create foods for us. That’s a whole big deal in itself and I just don’t have time for it here.
Why are we so obsessed with food?
People are sometimes labeled as “foodies” and depending on the crowd you’re in, that may be a compliment or a criticism. I call myself one and am happy to be acknowledged as such. I’ll receive it as a compliment, regardless of the intent.
OK… perhaps you are not obsessed with food. You’re completely fine with a premade meal that can be quickly prepared in a microwave. Or from a torn open package and pot of boiling water. Or a drive through, or a happy hour deal menu, or a cafeteria line. A paper plate doesn’t even faze you - night after night - not just once in a while or for a picnic. (We can still be friends… I promise not to judge)
Some people I know actually hate to cook!
But most of these people still appreciate something about food that is beyond the sensationalized foodie focus. They may not need the dazzle, or desire to give the time and energy to food creation, but they do find themselves sighing deeply as they bite into something sweet or savor something succulent.
They admit the cravings are real for ______ (fill in the blank; ice cream, steak, sushi, pork rinds, doughnuts, chocolate, pizza…). And they instinctively sense that sharing food with others is a seasoning not found in any bottle.
Why are we so obsessed with food?
Is it because it meets a basic, life sustaining need and keeps us alive? I don’t think so.
Is it the endless, varied opportunities for individual “tastes” (bad pun, I know) to be fulfilled? Maybe?
Or is it because we are human?
We are creative. We are artists. We are inquisitive. We are explorers and we are learners. We are communities. We are providers. We are care-givers and nurturers. We are sharers.
We are created in God’s image and I’m thinking He must in some mysterious and unidentifiable manner find food to be essential. Not for His existence of course - He’s God! But for something more profound. I think this is where it touches on the deeper things about food that in some way must reflect Him in us.
Senses. Sharing. Creating. Community. Pleasure.
All parts of Who God is. All parts of who we are.
We are created in God’s image and I’m thinking He must in some mysterious and unidentifiable manner find food to be essential. Not for His existence of course - He’s God! But for something more profound. I think this is where it touches on the deeper things about food that in some way must reflect Him in us.
The way we gather together around a table for food. I know He likes that.
The creative expression that cares for details in the craft of food. I’m sure that makes Him proud.
The secret ingredient (love!), and the joy we stir in as we create food for people we value. He is very into love and serving!
The generous heart that feeds someone else, whether made by our own hands or purchased from others with our own resources. For souls we know and those we don’t. God loves a cheerful giver.
And the grateful consumption, as we acknowledge the source of our foods, the humans involved in it’s production and assembly, and the God designed function of food for our bodies and for our enjoyment. These bodies that He designed, engaging the senses He chose to gift us with.
Baking gluten free pies with my mom, their “GG”, to share.
These simple acts surrounding food can all point back to Him, if we slow and chew a little longer. Savor and enjoy. Linger and consider God in the simple act of preparing, sharing, and eating.
Wherever we’re at with food, maybe there’s a spiritual side inviting us to explore further.
Planning, purchasing, preparing, presenting, and partaking, each part acknowledged as a reflection of our humanity and hold a bowing to our God.
God created us spirit, soul and body and every time we engage all three of our parts into a connected approach to Him, we become more WHOLE.
Bon Appétit !
