Brian’s Reflection: Monday, May 5, 2008


A gourmet who thinks of calories
is like a tart who looks at her watch.

- James Beard, cook, born on this day,
1903, in Portland OR


A dear friend of mine told me a story about a “spiritual” teacher who was asked to give an example of the divinity of Jesus. She said, “Jesus never made a resurrection appearance to Herod; who but God could have resisted a temptation like that!”

Could I possibly have resisted a pun like Beard’s????

OK, ok, I’ll grant you - we eat far too many calories, most of us, literally speaking. But this isn’t about physical food. It’s about the overwhelming blessings of God, of Life, of this spectacular Earth, of the human community.

To be alive is about a stunning surfeit of “calories”. There is so much! So much Wonder. Beauty. Tenderness. Thoughtfulness. Gentleness. Caring. Surprise. Awe.

Why choose their opposites?? Why permit perverseness to spoil what God intended in Her Creation?

No good tart (hee, hee!) would worry about lingering in pleasure. No cook would worry about calories, and no eater of fine things would worry about calories (though might do about excessive quantities).

Life offers abundance beyond calculation for those profligate in Love.

Indulge!

Brian+