I have had to take a temporary pause from the daily cooking as my business travels, along with my husband's, have made it quite tough to do. This is my busy teaching season where I teach law all across the country for a bar review course, preparing students to pass their respective bar exams. And my husband, well, he is always needing to travel to see the people he represents in their baseball careers. We are so blessed to have flexibility in our jobs, yet it makes it quite stressful at times when we cannot all be together. Needless to say, I have been sharing the "Cooking To Contribute" endeavor with all that I meet, and I have made some wonderful friends along the way. I have been contributing in other ways, as I always make a conscious effort to do some good in each day that God has given us.
For instance, I bought a military service man a meal and a beer when I noticed him sitting next to me in the airport restaurant. I noticed his backpack with his name embroidered along with "UNITED STATES ARMY" in bold type. I looked at him and said, "Thank you so much for all that you do for us here in America...can I please buy you dinner as a token of my and my family's appreciation?" He replied, in his oh-so-respectful demeanor, "Ma'am, I would appreciate that and I am honored to do what I do." With that, and a lump in my throat, I told the waiter to please put it on my tab.
When I see the individuals outside of the grocery store with their metal box on the table asking for donations to "Help the Homeless", how can I resist? Even if it is some spare change, every little bit helps. And if for some unjustified reason, I am being ripped off or conned, I lay no worry on that possibility because it is not up to me to judge. The Man upstairs knows one's heart, and I wish that we all, as a population, could take some pause each day to realize that it is so possible to "give" to one who has less than you...it is actually quite joyful and comforting. The head pastor at our church always says, "The greatest blessing in giving is that you are the one being blessed." When you give and sincerely care about others, it truly does touch your heart.
With my children at the forefront of this project, I am seeing the positive progress in my message of the importance of giving. At the drug store yesterday, the cashier asked me if I wanted to donate to Lou Gehrig's disease research, and before I could even think about it, Sophia piped in with, "Mom! Yes, we want to do that." So, we did.
Please keep following as some yummy recipes are sure to be back soon...
I wish you all a day filled with love, good news, good health, beautiful weather and a full and grateful tummy! :)
