In my previous blog, written on Christmas day, I waxed eloquent about how our family had made our traditional Christmas brunch the still point in our changing world. I wrote about how our sons want the menu to be precisely the same as it has always been, and that though we were spending Christmas in a new locale nothing would change our brunch. I ventured to say that there was something virtuous and meaningful about all of this. I declared that some things never change. And I inserted a resounding "Hallelujah!"Enter life!
The details are not necessary to make the point, but something happened that morning that caused all of us to recognize how life reshapes assumptions and priorities. The monkey bread was raising in the pan, and spilling beyond it. The casserole wasn't in the oven, the table wasn't set. Yet suddenly none of that mattered. Arriving like a sudden storm, the circumstances of life transformed our sense of what was truly important. And it wasn't a casserole, tasty though it may be.
The brunch was eventually served on Christmas day, but it became supper. The monkey bread raised to the point of overtaking the kitchen. We almost called out the National Guard. The bread burned, the casserole wasn't quite done, and not everyone was able to be at the table. It was the ruination of our Christmas tradition.
Or was it? I think not. That day we were reminded that the meaning of the season isn't in menus, rituals or traditions. It took the interruption of ritual, the postponement of tradition, for us to understand why they were so meaningful to us in the first place. The love and support of family, being there for each other in good times and bad, is the ingredient that makes this brunch significant, and perhaps even sacramental.
The burned, puffed-up monkey bread couldn't have been tastier. It was infused with love.
Some things have to change. Hallelujah!
Gee, Grant. You didn't even tell us what the event was that chnaged everything. Don't leave us in suspense.
ReplyDeleteHi, Margie.
ReplyDeleteI didn't give details because it was personal to our family and not essential to the overall point I was making. I actually feel that the intent of my post is made stronger when it isn't tied to a specific event.
The lesson for me was that things happen, sometimes as random as rain. When they do we find that we may have to adjust long-held assumptions. A tradition I wrote about with such certainty on Christmas morning was transformed by life's interruptions.
I still believe what I wrote on December 25. I simply have learned to embrace it more tentatively.
I hope the long absence doesn't indicate an all-out abandonment of Amused.
ReplyDeleteLooking forward to the next post.
(4/24)
Hi, Christian.
ReplyDeleteThanks for your comment. I admit there has been a long period without posts. It's easy to let things slide once you've broken your pace.
I do intend to begin posting again. Thanks for the prod in that direction.
Grant,
ReplyDeleteAs usual, your thoughts and wisdom is deeply appreciated. Please continue to share and I will enjoy participating in the future.
Dan
I miss your blog entries, Grant. Whether you like it or not, you have a lot of wisdom to share.
ReplyDeleteI miss your blogs, Grant. You have a lot of wisdom to share as well as your wit.
ReplyDeleteI miss your blogs, Grant....Please start writing again!!
ReplyDelete