Soup and Sweetgrass


Last week when my stepson held a spontaneous celebration in honour of his house’s 100th year birthday, I was excited to be invited. I love houses and all the meaning they hold.

Having another reason for getting together to share the ritual of a meal with our family members was such a delight.

A flurry of emails circulated with each of us sharing our excitement and telling one another what we were going to contribute to the meal.

Before leaving for the party, my son and I made a card and gathered a beeswax candle and some sweet grass expressing the intention on our card of offering gifts of light and clarity to the home.

When we walked in the door, the aroma of soup greeted us, the beautifully set table awaited us, and the kitchen was abuzz with activity.

As we gathered at the table my stepson said a few words of welcome, acknowledged his joy at living under this roof and offered gratefulness to all of us for helping to build wonderful memories together there.

My family is good at injecting special moments into our gatherings.

With big smiles in our hearts, we dug into the delicious food on our plates. Pleasurable “ooohs” and “aaahhs” ensued.

When the time for dessert arrived an email was read from one member of our family who wasn’t able to attend. His words sparked more conversation and at one point, it came up that the 8 year old at the table had lived his whole life in the house.

He surprised us by asking if anyone had died there. We agreed that in 100 years, yes, most likely a few people had died there. Talk followed about the importance to some of dying in their home in the company of loved ones.

We all laughed when the 8 year old said that he hoped he’d live in this house for a very long time and that he imagined that he’d be alive to celebrate it’s 200th year birthday. That prompted a conversation about home being where the heart is and the pros and cons of a long life.

I’m so glad my stepson decided to mark his house’s 100th birthday.

The ritual of sharing a meal together with attention paid to creating meaningful moments, left all of us nourished with caring conversation, delicious food and deep connection.

Is there something that you want to celebrate? What simple thing will you do that will create the space for a meaningful moment?

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