My Cup of Tea: Starting from Scratch

Baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, olive oil, chili powder, vegetable oil, soy sauce, flour, brown sugar, ginger, garlic, oregano, vanilla extract, onions, butter, and the list just grew. I realized I have never had to start from scratch. Never have I stocked a kitchen from the ground up. It has developed over time or been combined with items from a roommate. I have bought all these ingredients before, but maybe only two at a time. It is costly and overwhelming and brings both great triumph and some failure.

It was a bit daunting to determine what I was going to need to cook a single meal. I needed a skillet and a pot and a spatula and a garlic press and a vegetable peeler and food storage containers. So much had to be invested just to cook my first dinner, not to mention my first hot breakfast.

I made four trips to the grocery store before I finally had planned out a meal and collected all the ingredients I would need. Then there was navigating the stove connected to the propane tank and the small countertop for food prep. My first dinner was delicious. I think it was even tastier because I knew all that had gone into being able to cook this one meal. My baked oatmeal tasted good, but I forgot to grease the pan (I had even bought butter for such a task) and I made too much. Last night I made stir fry, but overcooked the rice and my teriyaki sauce did not turn out as planned. I am recognizing it is not always easy to start from scratch.

Friendships, routine, purpose, church, mentoring, role, home, language, transportation, community, and the list just grows. There are so many ingredients that make a life. Some days I have the right combination of ingredients to make life meaningful and joyful. Other days end and I realize I was missing some important ingredients. Every day I am working to identify what ingredients I am missing and determine how I am going to find those ingredients.