Refreshment 8/24/22

We are still hanging out here in Salt Lake City - until the end of the month -and for the past two weeks I have had the privilege of joining my mother-in-law, and some of her extended female family members, for Wednesday lunch. The tradition of gathering each Wednesday started in the middle of the pandemic when my mother-in-law’s ninety one year old twin aunts, were trying to find ways to stay connected to their friends and family. The came up with a plan to bake goodies each week and then one of their daughters would pick them up and drive them around town to drop off the treats. They began calling it “refreshment day” and have continued the tradition even now that the need for isolation is over.

These days, instead of driving around and dropping off goodies, they gather for lunch at either a restaurant or someone’s house. Last week was their one hundredth refreshment day and I was honored to be included in the gathering.

There are so many wonderful things about this gathering time. It is pretty much exclusively for the women in the family (although Jason was allowed to attend a couple of weeks ago since the lunch was at his mothers and he had not seen his great aunts in a very long time).

It also keeps everyone connected and in touch with each other. And they all take time out of their busy lives to attend each week - a miracle if you really think about it.

For the hundredth celebration, we gathered around Jason’s aunt’s dining room table - ate a yummy casserole - while also feasting on the produce from her abundant garden - tomatoes, cucumbers, and even tiny grapes that were both bitter and sweet and one of the most delicious things I have ever eaten. We finished off our meal with a homemade apple pie made by one of Jason’s second cousins who just happens to look and move like my own aunt back in Oklahoma.

As we ate we heard stories of what was happening in each persons life, stories of upcoming doctors appointments, grandchildren, love stories of how different members of the family met, and upcoming travel plans. One of the great aunts had traveled extensively with her husband all over the world and she shared tales of adventure, including being pummeled by rocks in their tour bus while in Egypt during a time of political unrest.

These lunches carried me back to a time long ago when I would visit my own aunt each summer in Oklahoma and we would gather around my great aunts table for lunch. Each week, promptly at noon, many extended members of the family would leave their desks or places of work and drive to her house for a sit down meal - the main meal of the day. It was a much more formal affair than the one here in Salt Lake - and it included all members of the family, not just the women - but the same types of things happened around that table. We would partake of some fresh grown produce. Eat yummy food. Discuss the days events. Laughter would flow. I remember those times fondly, especially as many of the people who used to gather around that table are no longer with us.

Last week, after lunch Jason’s aunt took us out to her garden behind her house. Beside the fountain she let me pick more grapes that were warm from the afternoon sun. We toured her garden beds and marveled at the size of the cucumbers hiding under the vines. We picked tiny tomatoes from the tall plants and popped them in our mouth - letting their sweet goodness explode on our tongues. It was holy and delightful and so very refreshing.

The week before my mother in law had filled my bag with monster zucchinis from her garden that I turned into zucchini bread in the kitchen of my mother’s apartment - something that would have been near impossible in our tiny Airstream kitchen. And while we have been here she has continued to gift us with tomatoes, cucumbers, and radishes from her garden. Last night sending me home with more fresh chives than I know what to do with.

I sit here today feeling gifted, fed, included, and refreshed. Which are probably just other words for love if you think about it.

Yesterday I was reviewing some notes from a book I have been slowly working my way through called, “World Enough and Time” by the author Christian McEwan. It is a lovely book about slowness and its direct link to creativity. As I reviewed the notes I came across the section where the author speaks about Sabbath. She refers back to the Hebrew roots of the word “refreshed” (vaiynafesh) which, in addition to be translated as refreshed, has also been translated as “exhaled” (think of the Ruah or breath of God) or “infused with soul”. She goes on to say that the word “refreshed is a, “a tender poetic usage implying that soul itself only comes into being when the body has a chance to relax.”

How lovely is that description?

I have spent a great deal of time over the years considering the word Sabbath and how best to practice this invitation it. I think I sometimes get frustrated thinking it has to look a certain way or be on a certain day of the week. But right now, I have a sense that I encountered what it means to take Sabbath rest around Jason’s aunt’s table last week. And I know that I did so all those years ago around my great aunts dining table as well.

Seems that Jason’s great aunts were on to something when they called this special gathering time “refreshment Wednesdays”.

What a gift to be invited to share a time of “refreshment” with others. To be given a chance to put my busy work down for a bit and be “infused with soul”. To be gifted with a chance to relax and enjoy what has been created.

We will be heading to Seattle for a quick trip to see one of our favorite bands this weekend. Then we will be returning to Salt Lake for just a few more days before we head out again. I have no doubt I will be carrying this word “refreshment” with me as I go forward. Holding it up with the word Sabbath, and seeking out places where it flows.