“Bruno, I’m home!”
“Are we going to the grocery store?”
“We are.”
“Dad, can I pick out dinner?”
“You sure can!”
I love the process of serving a meal.
From shopping at the grocery store, prepping, the food, cooking the meal, plating, and presenting a finished product.
I even enjoy taking the plates away and the cleanup afterwards.
This entire process is a stress-reliever for me.
I truly get lost in the process, it is fun.
I love to create joy and connection from a meal that I made.
I don’t think there is anything more satisfying.
This isn’t only my passion on Sundays when we have our family and neighbors over for a 4 course meal.
This is my passion on a Tuesday night when it is just tacos.
On the particular Tuesday afternoon, Bruno, our 5 year old, was patiently waiting for me to get home so we could go to the grocery store.
Tonight was Taco Tuesday and he could not wait to tell me that he wanted to have fish tacos, his favorite.
We have a great local supermarket, the one that has the front doors open as you walk in.
It is very easy to get inspired to begin a meal with all of the great colors and smells of the fresh produce as soon as we walk in.
I can only imagine what a child feels when they walk in.
The colors, the variety, the people.
For us, shopping for groceries has always been an exciting experience.
Tonight, we only needed a few key ingredients for our fish tacos. salmon, mangoes, and tortillas.
I prepared Bruno for a simple 3 ingredient run.
He would map our course.
Mangoes are to the left when we walk in, straight back and to the left is the fish counter.
From there another straight run to the tortillas and then it would be a dash down the aisle to the cashier.
“Let’s see how fast we can do it!” Bruno exclaimed.
“Whoa! Look at all the mangoes Dad!”
We threw two in the bag and dashed to our next checkpoint, the fish counter.
Let me pause this story for a moment and tell you that… if you haven’t sensed it already, we have a special 5 year old.
From the time he could eat solid foods, he ate what we ate, and as he began to get older and understand the value of healthy eating, he was able to make great food choices.
He and I had many many trips to this supermarket and on this day the choices were all his.
As we approached the fish counter the varying oranges of the salmon and steelhead trout were on full display.
“Dad look at the bright orange one, can we get that one?” He asked me about that salmon as if he was asking for a new toy. Within earshot was Frank our Fish Guy.
“He is really excited about that salmon” Frank said, hardly surprised because he had seen us there twice a week for the last few years, and he always commented how cool it was that our kids liked to eat fish. It seemed like a bright spot in his day when he saw Bruno’s excitement of the first sight of the bright orange in the seafood case.
“Buddy, what piece do you want?”
“Ummm, that one pointing to the brightest piece in the case.”
“That’s Sockeye,” Frank said.
Bruno looked back at me and said “Dad that’s Sockeye” and now he was the expert.
Frank wasn’t done educating though, “Wild Salmon is better for you, has many vitamins and minerals. You’ll grow up to be a strong boy if you keep eating this regularly.”
“Here you go buddy” as he finished his lesson and walked around the counter, and handed Bruno the wrapped salmon. “Enjoy your dinner”
“Thanks,” Bruno said as he jumped back in the cart.
“Dad, don’t forget tortillas!!”
We grabbed our pack of tortillas, and made a bee-line to the register.
“We were fast, right Dad!”
What seemed like an insignificant quick weeknight shopping trip, turned into an instant memory for us.
As we are faced with many uncertainties, it is easy to get swept up in fear and anxiety.
Fear and anxiety over time lead to burnout.
I know,
It did for me.
What we must not forget are the small moments that make up the big picture of our lives.
I invite you to find a small moment, live in it, enjoy it, and indulge in it.
Then….practice finding more.
Grocery shopping might not be your thing, but find the thing that is yours.
Build a reward into that simple daily task.
Include the people that their mere presence brings you much joy.
Sip your coffee or tea a little slower. Be intentional about it. Set a 15 minute timer, sit in a quiet spot and just enjoy it.
Think great thoughts.
Think about the joyful moments of the day ahead, and instead of reaching for your phone to check the daily unending loop of 24 hours of in-your-face fear and anxiety inducing news.
Or, the daily barrage of emails that we couldn’t get to if we tried.
Resolve to find your peaceful, joy inducing moments, and curate them into the life you truly want to live.