Soon to be a Common Experience!

I was delighted to observe two women on my evening bus, one with title in hand, discussing In Defense of Food. Seeing as I was seated nearby, I was able to catch snatches from their conversation–that being an animated appraisal of Pollan’s adage to ‘not eat anything one’s great-grandmother would not recognize as food’ (Section III, Chapter Two). This suggestion from the text led them to share memories of family meals and food products available, then and now.

Of course, it resonates with me, too. Pastured as I was between my parents’ rural homestead and my grandparents’ farm, I was an equal opportunity diner drifting between whichever house was offering the best meal. My grandmother’s tour de force, though, was noon-lunch, and I was easily on hand. Given the enormous garden she cultivated, this noon-lunch always featured an abundance of whole foods. And, presentation mattered, with each course and side requiring its dedicated dishware and service. Flowers, too, with a heady fragrance (lilacs and peonies) festooned the table…

I now pause in my narrative and rambling nostalgia, to ask this blog readership…what are your food memories?