Crowding the Mushrooms

A couple of years ago when the movie "Julie and Julia" came out in theatres, I knew I had to see it.  Not only do I absolutely love cooking, but *obviously* have some interest in blogging as well, so I figured it would be right up my alley.  Actually, it turns out I was rather disappointed with the movie - the plot line was a little boring and I really did not find the "Julie" character to be at all endearing ... she whined way too much for my liking and I often found myself wishing the director would just stick with the story of Julia Child's life and leave the flashbacks to "Julie's" life in the ditch.  However, there is one line of the movie that has stuck with me.  It resonated in my head as soon as I heard it.  For some reason, it was one of those lines that you can instantly recognize for it's literal and metaphoric truth.   So ... after that great build up ... here's the line in question:

Don't crowd the mushrooms!

It really does make a difference!  Put too many mushrooms in the frying pan, and they just seem to get all mushy and gushy and don't saute properly.  But, if you just scatter them in their sparsely, they brown up in such a delicious manner!   The problem is, though, that I really don't want to take so much time when I'm preparing a meal.  I want the maximum result for the minimum time investment.  I want my mushrooms nicely browned, but I want to crowd them all together in the pan so I don't have to cook them in batches.

The same is so true of my life.  I want results but I often don't want to slow down and invest enough time in a project, a relationship, even in myself sometimes (!) to get the results that I desire.  I want to make a success of all that I attempt, but I don't want to spend time perfecting my craft so that I will be a success.  I want my relationships to be deep and meaningful, but can't we just text meaningfully back and forth a couple of times a day and make a go of it?   I want to manage stress better, but I don't always want to take the time to breathe deep, centre myself, and let go of the bad energy.  I want short cuts, recipes that involve nothing more than 3 steps, 5 ingredients and one pan, and problems that can be resolved in the same length of time it takes to play a few rounds of Bejeweled.

Since "Julie and Julia," I find myself periodically taking a deep breath and reminding myself not to "crowd the mushrooms."  With all the emphasis on "quality" vs. "quantity" that seems to pervade our culture, I need a constant reminder that there is no replacement for investing large amounts of time into the areas of my life that really count.  Whether it is my own physical and emotional fitness, my relationships, or my work, the measure of my success will in a large way be accounted for by how much time I have invested.   And the bottom line is that I am worth the investment.  We are given 24 hours in each day.   I'm determined in 2011 that I won't get caught up in "crowding the mushrooms" and racing around in those 24 hours, trying to fit so much in that nothing gets done properly.  Instead, I'm going to invest enough time into my own well-being to ensure success.

Marvelous Monday - The Simple Things

It's Marvelous Monday again, and today I am thankful for the simple things in life:

.... like the fact that I've been able to walk for half an hour every day with my Mum this week, enjoying the late summer farmland while getting back into a regular exercise routine.

Walking past the vineyards, we spot how the grapes are ripening so quickly this year.
Soon the air will be filled with their sweet fragrance that will surround us as we walk by.

.... like the beautiful birthday flowers from my husband that lasted and lasted, filling me with cheer whenever I saw their beautiful colours.

I still have 2 carnations left two weeks later!

.... like the colourful jars of relish and salsa I was able to can with our very own delicious garden produce.

I especially enjoy making this relish which is made to my late Grandmother's recipe.  Reminds me of cheddar cheese sandwiches on crusty bread, made with a skim of home-made relish - the food of my childhood.

....and like the simple pleasure of enjoying a relaxing meal beside the water, watching the sail boats go by.

Mr. Magnolia and I enjoyed a leisurely meal at the Niagara-on-the-Lake Golf Course
on Sunday.  The clubhouse provided an amazing view of the Niagara River where it enters into Lake Ontario, immediately across the river from Old Fort Niagara, New York.

Sometimes, we just need the simple things in life to remind us of the important things in life .... like taking care of our health, spending time with our loved ones, and finding time for rest and restoration.

What's Shaking?

Robin over at Your Daily Dose recently blogged about Compassion versus Empathy and she got me thinking about the times of struggle and pain we all go through.  Do you think there is a purpose in it all?  Robin suggests that it isn't until we have first-hand knowledge of pain that we can really be empathetic towards others.  I think she has a very valid point.

I've been looking at this big piece of equipment for quite a while now:

It's a soil screener belonging to a landscaping firm that rents property from us. At this time of year, whenever I walk to our shop in the mornings, this machine is up and running. Bumpy, rough soil is loaded into one end, and fine, nicely-sifted soil comes out the other. I keep thinking as I go by that I wish there was some kind of machine that would do the same for my heart!  Wouldn't it be great if we could put all the rough edges of our characters into a giant sifter, then stand back and watch while our attitudes, thoughts, and actions turned into fine, soft, productive "soil"?  There are so many aspects of my character that I would like to improve.  There are times when I am selfish, when I wish I would be quicker to put the needs of others before my own.  There are times when I am impatient, when I wish I was more tolerant, and slower to anger.  There are moments when I am fearful, when I wish I was courageous.  I want my character to improve, I just wish there was a magic machine that would do the work for me!

Another image caught my attention recently as well.  I was watching a program about agricultural improvements in Kenya and was fascinated to see how grains are winnowed.

Winnowing sorts the grains of wheat from the chaff.  The chaff, or husks, are lighter and so by shaking and rolling the basket of wheat, allowing a current of air to pass through, the heavier grains fall into a pile, and the lighter chaff is blown away.  Apparently there is a real art to winnowing and I can imagine it takes time to master the technique.

Watching the Kenyan women winnowing with such graceful motions, I was suddenly transfixed with the idea that although it looks beautiful from the point of view of the observer, if I was a grain of wheat, I might not be enjoying the experience nearly as much.  The grain is tossed about, rocked back and forth and shaken.  I don't know about you, but I don't like it when my life is tossed, rocked and shaken.  It's painful.  It's uncomfortable.  It's positively unsettling!  But maybe that is why we experience times like that in our lives, in order for the wheat to be sorted from the chaff.

I guess believing that there might be some purpose to the painful times of our lives helps us to get through them.  If we think it is all in vain, then there are times when it would be absolutely unbearable.  So the next time it feels like my world is being shaken, I'm going to try to remind myself that maybe I am going through a winnowing process, an opportunity for my character to improve and for me to come out the other side a little finer, a little softer, and perhaps as Robin pointed out, a little more empathetic towards others.

Spring Cleaning

We have some beautiful Saskatoon Berry bushes on our farm. They were planted by my father-in-law quite a few years ago and right now they are in full bloom. In the Spring, their tiny white blooms are so pretty against the soft grey bark of the branches. For a few short days in the early Summer, we pick their fruit and make pies, jams, and juice. But most of the fruit goes to the birds, especially Cedar Wax Wings that come in large numbers, perching on the bushes, pecking away, until each bush is literally quivering with their movements.

I've often wondered why the bush that is known as a Saskatoon Berry in the Prairie Provinces, is called a Service Berry on the East Coast. Recently I read that the reason they are called Service Berries actually has to do with funeral services! Apparently before the invention of back-hoes when graves had to be dug by hand, if someone died during the winter their body would be temporarily interred in a crypt. Then, when the ground was thawed, there would be a second memorial service and their coffin would be buried in the earth. When the Service Berry bushes came into bloom, their delicate white flowers were a sign that the ground would be soft enough for burial services to be held, and so that is how they got their name.

It's an interesting juxtaposition of themes - death and Spring don't usually go hand-in-hand. Yet my thoughts are drawn to this idea right now because as much as Spring is a time of renewal, perhaps the renewal can only happen after a burial of sorts. After all, we do bury seeds in the ground in order for plants to spring up. And it seems like there are times when we have to purge ourselves of things that are weighing us down, holding us back, in order for space to be made in our hearts for new things. Right now it seems that there are things in my heart that need to be purged: old attitudes to be exchanged for new ones, hurts that have been festering that need to be released, dusty areas in the corners of my soul that need some Spring cleaning! Just as my body is craving spring salads, the kinds of greens that are known to clean sluggish blood, so my soul is craving fresh nourishment that will clear my heart and mind of sluggish thoughts and negative attitudes.

I buried my face in a bouquet of Service Berry blossoms today and had a brief service of my own. It was a private service between me and God, laying to rest things that need to be left behind. Now I look forward to embracing the new - filling my heart with the fresh greens of Spring. It will be interesting to see what new things come in to occupy the newly-made spaces in my heart.