Oy!

I mentioned before that cooking and I don't quite see eye-to-eye. There are two main impediments to cooking for me: for one, I won't touch raw meat, and for two, I don't eat any vegetables other than green beans. However, over the last couple months I have been making a conscious effort to expand my culinary horizons. Obviously, it's way cheaper and better for us than eating out, but *cliche alert!* it also makes me feel so good to provide for my family. Even on days when my fibromyalgia and fatigue are bad and I really can't do much of anything during the day, usually by the time dinner rolls around I've got enough energy to cook and Chris is home to keep G out of my way. On days like that it's often the only thing I feel like I've accomplished at all, and is a huge self-esteem and mood boost.

Cooking also gives me a chance, even when I'm just microwaving ravioli or soup for G's lunch, to do some spiritual reconnecting. Each time I prepare food for someone, it's an opportunity to honor Hestia or Frigga or whatever deity you most connect with that kind of activity (for me, it's usually one of those two). I don't have an altar of any kind in my kitchen, because there's nowhere to put it, not even on the windowsills; I would desperately love to get an over-the-sink shelf to employ as one, something like this: 2-Tiered Scrolled Wood Sink Shelf. But while I'm cooking or preparing to cook, I will keep Hestia in my mind and try to channel her energy, love, warmth and generosity into myself, while at the same time pouring love, good health and abundance into whatever I'm making. Doing this also makes cooking a little easier when I just don't feel like it.

So. Tonight's adventure in making dinner was...adventurous. While cooking hamburger to make Sloppy Joe's, the spatula slipped and flung some of it directly onto my hand and shirt, which didn't feel particularly awesome. Then I drained the hamburger and about a quarter of it ended up in the sink. Deep breath, Alicia! Refocus! It's not about the outcome being five-star (especially for a novice like me), it's about trying, and getting familiar with it, and above all about the intent and keeping focused on this: "...all acts of love and pleasure are my rituals."

Brightest blessings,

Alicia