A food-for-all

Courtesy of Worth1000.com

Merry Christmas, dear readers. With all of the holiday business behind me, I'm having a chance to sit and ruminate about some things, mainly holidays, celebrations, and food. 


I used to shudder when church ladies rallied en masse to whip up vats of food for the bereaved at funerals. Associating food with death always reminded me of the old Twilight Zone episode of The Sin Eaters, where a man was hired to take on the sins of the dead by eating the food that was arrayed around the bodies. When the Eater died, the task of taking on his sins, an unimaginable number by trade, fell to his son, who ate, and screamed. Ate. And screamed. I never could shake that faded image from my mind.


How about associating food with comfort? Even in elementary school, when I came upon a total stranger who had crashed on his bike, what was my reaction? I asked the kid, "Would you like a Popsicle?" Huh?  I remember pedaling furiously to the ice cream truck, buying a Dreamsicle, and dropping it on the street before I got it back to the kid. All I could think of was trying to soothe him with food, even at so young an age. My grandmother told me a story when I was young, about being teased at school because of her weight. When she got home, my great-grandmother would tell her, "There's pie in the pantry." This is a pattern I carry out in my own life: Hate self because of weight. Eat for comfort. Gain weight. Hate self for gaining weight. Lather. Rinse. Repeat. What a mess.


So I ask myself, what is Christmas? Ham, Waldorf salad, mac and cheese, Swedish Puff, cheese fondue, and Best Half's mother's dip? Um, no. It's when Jesus, pure God and pure Man, came to Earth to save us from ourselves. So why does my mind first conjure up a gorgeous Burger's Smokehouse ham? Because, through the years, the holiday, the emotions, the celebration, the meaning, and the food, have all entwined into one huge blob, with the food symbolizing the whole. 


The question becomes, if I don't partake of the food, does that shoot the whole enchilada? Is Christmas still Christmas without food? Well, Christ came whether I eat today or not. Just as He arose whether or not I consume mass quantities of Cadbury Cream Eggs. And the Puritans still had a party, whether or not I partake of the stuffing.


As a low-carber, I've had to substitute healthier versions of the old faithful foods, and now, as a newly sleeved low-carber, I am unable to eat most of the foods that will be on the table today. There may be resentment, or dismay, or pity. None of those will be in my heart.


Christmas is far more than the food, the gifts, or the trappings. I have the joy of giving to others, and celebrating the greatest Gift of all. 


Merry Christmas and Hanukkah, my friends. May the season be full of joy, not trapped by association with food, and may this year bring blessings to you and yours.


The Bionic Broad out.