This is one of my all-time favorite poems introduced to me by my all-time favorite English teacher my senior year of high school. Thank you, Mr. Pettit, for being one of those teachers to imprint my life so profoundly through your work. Helping me, through the lens of literature, to learn to seek to thrive and celebrate in this life—rather than just survive (though of course, in all reality, many days I'm just surviving). On some level I felt known in your class and my eyes were opened to the world of words like I’d never experienced. It's probably the sole reason I wound up an English major instead of a nurse (my original plan)--and I am grateful for it.
These words especially resonate: "...and always serve bread with your wine. But son, always serve wine."
One of the simplest, but most profound ways this currently resonates in my life is at our family dinners. We could sit around the table just to consume the necessary calories needed to survive in a day. But instead at our dinner table our family comes alive. Sometimes we come to the table inspired by the day. Other moments, we all drag to the table exhausted from the day, sometimes a bit cranky. But as soon as we sit down and dig in to our food it's like a blanket of safety and goodness falls on us and awakens our spirits. We come alive to the day and what our experience has been.
The kids almost always take the lead telling us facts and stories from their days. Camp watches his older sisters, his six-year old eyes literally glistening from his affection and love of having not one but two older sisters he looks up to. The girls banter back and forth and do the bulk of the talking. They often all three attempt to talk over each other, not meaning to intentionally be rude, but because there's so much to share. Haddie will then erupt into laughter, which will make Camp laugh and the rest of us soon to follow. Marshall occasionally agrees to tell one of his enthralling stories and the kids lean in to listen. His stories are their favorite.
I mainly just watch it all happen and soak it all in. In amazement. In wonder that these kids we've produced desire the same thing we do--to be together. At times, we'll ask questions or one kid will bring up a problem they're having with a friend or at school. The other kids will jump in to defend them and offer their advice (which is often really good and said better than I could ever put things into words). We are all hunting each other's territories a bit. We're laughing together. We don't keep things too serious because we need a place to play too. It's like you can see the stress, the hard parts of the day just drip off.
We usually eat kind of late (I have just never mastered the early dinner with our lifestyle). But I like it that way becuase that sweet point of connection then ushers us to bed--to rest feeling kept, close and loved. It's a place in time we thrive as a family. It's all my heart desires as a mom in a moment--a moment we get to have most every day.
When I hear, "But son, always serve wine,"--all that's above is the clearest expression of what it means to me. Really at the end of the day, it's all I want. It's all we need--each other.
