We were house guests at some friends’ lake house last weekend. Having never been there we decided that instead of bringing a house gift with us, we’d wait to see what they might need. After we got home, it was great fun selecting a couple of practical kitchen items to express our gratitude for a most enjoyable time.
This morning I served my single fried egg and some greens on a colorful plate, which meant the food was encircled by yellow and blue rings, creating a most cheerful presentation. This appealing visual was especially appreciated since I’m on a special eating program these days, determined to discover at last which foods are good for my body, and which ones I should avoid. We always hear that “food is the best medicine” and I’ve decided to experiment with what that trite but true saying really means to my particular body.
The plate is one of four given to us as a gift many years ago from our friend Vickie, who now goes by the name Victoria. But when she was Vickie, she was as attractive, colorful and bright as these plates. And like her plates, she made me smile to just be around her. When she gifted the plates to us, they weren’t something we needed. They didn’t match any of our other dishes, which I didn’t understand at the time, was the point. They matched one another with different but coordinated colored rings surrounding a different singular fruit in each of their centers. Because they stood out they often held a place of honor in the china cupboard standing behind the stacked china. Now, through the magic of my memory, I can have breakfast most any morning with Vickie, just by getting out the colorful Pier One plates she gave us that Christmas, that time when we were as close as family, and totally in the dark about the challenges awaiting us in our futures.
The soap dispenser we gave our friends for their lake house will most likely not endure as long as Vickie’s plates, but if it continues to work, (which is not guaranteed these days), I hope it continues to send the message of our gratitude that it was sent to represent.
