"And to every beast of the earth, and to every bird of the air, and to everything that creeps on the earth, everything that has the breath of life, I have given every green plant for food. God saw everything that was made, and indeed, it was very good." Genesis 1:30-31

I am in the midst of reading A.J. Jacobs' The Year of Living Bibically:One Man's Humble Quest to Follow the Bible as Literally as Possible. I have laughed out loud more while reading this book than any I have read for a very long time. His premise is to take all the laws he finds outlined in the scriptures, both Hebrew and Christian, and to systematically try to integrate and follow them to the letter. It makes for some very funny reading and I commend it to you.

Of course the scriptures are filled with many laws surrounding food. What we should eat, what we shouldn't eat. When we should eat certain things and when to abstain from others. The rules boggle the mind and could lead to some very obsessive-compulsive behavior. But I was struck with a particular realization he comes to around saying grace at meals. "They(the prayers) remind me that the food didn't spontaneously generate in my fridge. They make me more connected,more grateful, more grounded, more aware of my place in this complicated hummus cycle.(He is eating hummus and pita bread.) They remind me to taste the hummus instead of shoveling it into my maw like it's a nutrition pill. And they remind me that I'm lucky to have food at all. Basically, they help me get outside of my self-obsessed cranium."

I connected with these words because I have been thinking about all the mixed messages we get in our culture about food. From the myriad of ads on television for diets that replace food with either pills or mixtures of bizarre liquids to drink instead of eating, I began to wonder when food became the enemy. For a culture that is hurdling into a obesity epidemic, how did we get to this place? Hungry yet never satisfied. Craving the very things, mostly not real food, that will, if taken to the extreme, kill us. It is a curious state.

I wonder if we took the time to give thanks for the food we find before us at meals, even in a silent way of taking it in and mentally following its path to our table, if it would allow us to taste more fully, savoring the connections made along the way satisfying us more. Can you say grace over a Twinkie in the same way you can an apple? I don't know but I think the humble act of offering thanks might also provide that reflective moment between plate and mouth that would bring us back to our senses and set us on a better path.

Over the weekend I will continue to read this book which is providing me with some much needed laughter. I also plan to take time to offer my gratitude for the food which is nourishing my body and soul, which came to me through no work of my own. In that offering I will honor the connections of the hands that planted, toiled, harvested and carried the gifts of nutrition that feed me and, I pray, satisfy my hunger.

It is at least one way to follow the good words found in these ancient texts.

Have a blessed weekend……………….