Blessings abound, stop and look around

Submitted by Columnist Fannie Moore

A few days ago Hubby and I were discussing what to fix for breakfast. His favorite thing is oatmeal with raisins and walnuts added and he could eat that every day. So, what’s the problem?

Well, I like oatmeal but I don’t want the same thing every day, even if it is my favorite breakfast,

I usually like eggs, fixed any number of ways, with bacon and coffee.

So there’s the problem. I get tired of cooking oatmeal every day but I do it just because Hubby wants it. Occasionally, I can persuade him to try an omelet, or scrambled eggs with bacon, toast, and some of the new jelly I made. So, actually we’re in a kind of rut when it comes to breakfast.

This discussion soon led to my complaint, “I’m tired of cooking three meals a day.” Since the COVID-19 “stay at home order”, it has been a perpetual task, first deciding what to cook, then the labor-intensive chore of preparing a healthy, delicious meal.  Before the confinement, we would often run to town for breakfast or lunch, and an occasional night out for supper. But that has all been put on hold.

I moaned and groaned on this topic for a little while, and then it hit me. “What do you have to complain about? You have a freezer full of good food and a pantry with the other items needed for cooking.”

So, I admitted that I should not be complaining about cooking, I should be grateful that we were so blessed to have an ample food supply. I realized not everyone is as fortunate, so I apologized for my complaining, and you guessed it. I went to the kitchen and cooked oatmeal.

We were having our children over for lunch, and I started to plan what I was going to cook. It wouldn’t have mattered to them, because they still like just about anything from Mama’s kitchen. But I wanted it to be something they didn’t usually have very often. As I began to make the menu, I realized I had everything I needed to make lunch.

I went to the freezer, took out pork chops, okra, tomatoes, purple hull peas, and peaches. From the pantry, I found cornbread mix, baking mix, rice, cream of mushroom soup, and evaporated milk. In the freezer on the refrigerator, I found ice cream, whole kernel corn, and rolls. Apples were found on the table,.

So, we were all set.

When the meal was ready to serve we had pork chop and rice casserole, okra, and tomatoes cooked with onion, purple hull peas, corn, baked apples, cornbread, and rolls. For dessert, we had peach cobbler with ice cream.

As we gathered at the table to eat, we all realized this had come from our hard work, planning, and preparation. But mostly, we realized it was all because of God’s blessings.

We don’t have gardens anymore but we were fortunate enough to find several gardeners who had produce for sale. We selected, purchased, and prepared for freezing the bounty others had worked so hard for.

This was certainly a wake-up call for me. I may still grumble a bit for having to prepare three meals a day, but if we plan wisely, we can make use of leftovers for another meal. And I hope someone reminds me if I start to complain again, just how much God has blessed us.

Have you counted your blessings recently? Stop and look around. What do you see? Plenty of food, family to share it with, good health (or at least fairly good health), a home to house you and your family, and a comfortable bed for a good night’s rest when your long day is through?

The best we can do is to recognize the blessings, thank God for them, and then be willing to share with others who may not be quite as fortunate.


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