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"You don't need a house of worship to encounter the spiritual; it's found in the pattern of daily living, such as cooking the food we need".

-Tibetan lama saying

There is a long standing notion among the human race that the culinary arts have the ability to feed the soul as well as nourish the body. The soon-to-be-published anthology "Bread, Body, Spirit" covers how food and spirituality are linked. The editor of the anthology Alice Peck puts it best: "Everybody needs to eat, to be nourished. It's simple. It's unending. Food presents us with a vast opportunity:through our expiriences with food we can sustain a constant connection to the Sacred that pervades our lives."

I live in a country where food is plentiful. I am fully aware that there are plenty of places all over the world where the simple act of feeding oneself is a constant struggle, not a luxory, as it has a tendency to be in the United States. Therefore, when I present someone with the gift of food, I am giving them a tangible extension of my caring and good will. It is much in the same way a child makes an severly abstract drawing in which their parent displays proudly on the kitchen refridgerator. To make a meal is a labor of love, much like how a child is a labor of love.

The best homemade food gifts are often dishes that are the most portable. Many casseroles of various ethic backgrounds enter into this category, as well as various baked goods, if you are in the mood to make something sweet. There is nothing like a big dish of baked ziti, a bottle of wine, along with a fresh batch of chocolate chip cookies for desert to help ease a new neighbor into the transition of moving their family into their home.

Not only is a homecooked meal a great way to introduce yourself to a new neighbor, but it is also a great way to spark up a conversation with them. Telling the tale of how the recipie for the dinner you prepared them came to be can always be a beautiful ice breaker.

The lovely thing about using food as a gift is that you can alter it to whatever diet specifications the person on the recieving end may have. There are plenty of sumptuous heart healthy recipies, as well as countless cookbooks for every food allergy and medical condition.

Food, much like music, is a universal language, and it is always magical when it brings people together.

Learn more about this author, Katy Andrews.
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