Peas!
Memory Triggers
Peas remind me of my bonus daughter, Rebecca. She lived with us for nearly a year; it’s been a few months now since she moved out, and I miss her. Her father and I had been married for two years when she moved in, and at that time she and I were still somewhat cautious in our relationship.
The first time I made tuna casserole for three, I was hurried and distracted and dumped a bunch of peas into the dish. It was only after I’d stirred them into the other ingredients that I remembered:
Rebecca hates peas.
At the table that night, I apologized. Rebecca offered me grace. “It’s okay,” she said. “I know Dad likes them. I can eat around them.”
The Pea Incident is one of countless episodes in the day-in, day-out rhythm of family life that bonded us. By June, when Rebecca was ready to move on, she and I had walked together across the bridge from cautious to close. Now she’s planning a wedding with a fine man. Her father and I are thrilled for them.
I knew she wouldn’t be here with us forever. And Rich and I do enjoy our empty nest.
But I still mist up every time I cook peas.
Love is a fine building block for families.
3 All praise to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly realms because we are united with Christ. 4 Even before He made the world, God loved us and chose us in Christ to be holy and without fault in His eyes. 5 God decided in advance to adopt us into His own family by bringing us to Himself through Jesus Christ. This is what He wanted to do, and it gave Him great pleasure. 6 So we praise God for the glorious grace He has poured out on us who belong to His dear Son.
Ephesians 1:3-6 (NLT)
Recent Comments