Cracker banana

Banana – I was sitting in the back of a meeting, minding my own business, and enjoying the great dinner they provided from Sincerely Yours.  I’m a lover of chocolate dessert, but the only thing they provided was banana pudding.  I don’t like fresh bananas although banana flavoring can sometimes add a kick to foods.  So, after eating the nicely seasoned chicken and vegetables, I decided to get a small bowl of banana pudding.

The meeting carried on and I decided to take a bite of my dessert.  I had a decent size scoop, placed it into my mouth and was prepared to continue listening.  But, AS SOON AS the pudding touched my taste buds I had an instant memory of my mother.  It was this sudden flashback of the banana pudding my mother used to make when I was a child.  I had completely forgotten that she ever made it, but the second I tasted this pudding – all the memories came flooding back!  You better believe that I went and got another larger portion of the pudding and even took some home to eat later!

Cracker  – It was a typical outing last Friday.  My boyfriend and I were in Seymour, IN and decided to eat dinner at Cracker Barrel.  I’d already had Cracker Barrel twice that week for lunch with some colleagues, but there aren’t many options in Seymour.  We browsed over the menu.  He ordered the grilled catfish and I decided on some pancakes.  We laughed and chatted as we waited for the food to arrive.  Once it did, we grabbed each other’s hands and he said a blessing for our food, families and our relationship.

We continued on eating and laughing.  Then a man walked up to us.  He put his hand on my boyfriend’s back and said, “My family and I saw that you prayed before you ate your food and we think that’s a wonderful thing.  May God bless you both!”  I was taken aback to be complimented on something we take for granted as a regular practice of our day.  However,  it also felt good to be noticed for something positive.  So often we take time to gossip and waste our energy on the negative images and actions of others.  When’s the last time you complimented someone on something you appreciate about them?!

M.Y. September 2010