“The table is where time stops.” I love that. The Table brings people
together in a way like not much else can. Being around the table requires
commitment and energy and once time stops around the Table, at least for me, a
sense of fulfillment and relief floods my head, heart, and belly. I am overcome
with love and acceptance. The Table is a safe place for sharing. Sharing food,
sharing laughs, sharing tears, and sharing time.
I read an article recently about A
New Approach to the Table. This article spoke metaphorically of the Table
as the beating heart and center of the body, the home. It made reference to the
Table being the sustainer of life and health. “If the home is a body, the table
is the heart, the beating center, the sustainer of life and health.” I
passionately agree with this idea. The times I feel the most alive and the most
fed are the times I share meals and time around the Table with the people I
love.
Last night I enjoyed a take-out meal with some lovely ladies who I feel
special to have spent the evening with. On the 40 minute drive home in the
rain, my brain could not let go of the idea of the Table. The Table as an
object is so common place yet it serves such a greater purpose than to simply
seat folk and be dressed in fancy cloth for the holidays. Holidays are not the
only special occasions to prepare the Table. Special occasions are all the times
that loved ones gather and commit time and meals together- much like my
time in Olathe last night.
I am thankful for the effort my parents made when I
was a child to instill in me the necessity of sharing and making room at the
table.
The article that inspired my thoughts and words regarding the Table:
