Before we get to our exhibit, I need to pause and reflect on the Lahaina that was and mourn the loss of it… as it was and shall never be again.

Decades ago in 1985 my then very significant other took me on the most incredible vacation to Hawaii. He worked hard (and played harder) and so we had “mileage tickets” for first class tickets to Hawaii. It was delightful… so incredibly beautiful… and we spent a good bit of time in Lahaina. It was so lovely… with such history… and those Banyan trees. The news of the devastating fire that decimated the town is heartbreaking. I have not stopped thinking about my time there. The awe at the majesty of those trees, the quaintness of the whaling town, and the rustic bars that were abundant on Front Street. There was nothing quite like Lahaina… and my heart aches for those who lost their lives, those who lost their homes, their businesses… everything. I am so glad that in my “mind’s eye” I can still see it as it was and am so grateful I was able to visit it in my life.

Waimea Canyon (on Kauai) is the backdrop for a much thinner me. And how about those sun glasses!


One cannot think well, love well, sleep well, if one has not dined well. ― Virginia Woolf

Welcome to the post that has challenged me this month: What foods do you eat now that you couldn’t have imagined eating as a child?

Hmm. Great question to ask the child of the world’s worst cook – my mother. Really! The. Worst. (how did I know this? Well, her mother was an amazing cook… and I don’t quite know what happened, but there we have it!) In my home the was lots of “goulash” (not to be confused with gulyás), fake mashed potatoes, Campbell’s Soups (yeah my mother never, ever made soup from scratch), and “Chili” with celery (really… it was just a “soupier goulash” with beans substituted for macaroni). Needless to day, I much preferred my Nana’s home cooking… my nana made *everything* from scratch.

I have always, always been an adventurous eater… that kid who liked things other kids did not.  Yes, I was “that kid” who would eat – and enjoy – liver, tongue, chicken hearts, livers and gizzards… but I especially loved trying new things! I had a friend whose mother made the best enchiladas I have ever eaten… and every enchilada I have eaten since Mrs. Collazo’s enchiladas have paled in comparison!

But I think the thing I most appreciate now is someone who takes the time to cook *anything* from scratch. There is something about someone taking the time to make a meal that just elevates it to another level… even the simplest of dishes! Something made with love just tastes better.

Today, there is little I won’t eat…and I am still on that search for an enchilada that compares to Mrs. Collazo’s!

Thank you so very much for visiting this months exhibit! See you all back here next week!

 

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