Avocado Tarts as a sign... Sure, I'll go there.

Had family down over the weekend --from B'more. It was good. Very good.

As a farewell dinner we went to Pescados on China Street here in Richmond. It happened this way: A neighbor and friend caught us piling in to the car, and he said --you MUST go to Pescados before you leave Richmond. So we went. When we got there, we saw friends who were very excited about our pending move. They are medical professionals and promised to come on a service mission when we were settled in our new home. When we were seated at our table, the owner came and talked with us (what a card!) --and he told us MS had called and said dessert was on us. Now, dinner was FABULOUS! I had the wild shrimp enchilada --OMG --and other plates at the table included the scallops (which looked and smelled divine) and the pork. But then we had dessert --and we had the avocado tart OMG --a lime/citrus/avocado creme filling in a graham cracker crust infused with coconut and fresh avocado garnishes to top it all off.

O.M.G. Died and gone to heaven.
We won't be getting much of that in the near future unless we figure out how to make it ourselves. And I think we will be a but busy otherwise for a while.

Besides... Joel is gonna have to try things like fry bread and Indian tacos !!!!

At prayer this morning (Genesis 2:6-8)

-then the LORD God formed man from the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and the man became a living being. And the LORD God planted a garden in Eden, in the east; and there he put the man whom he had formed. Out of the ground the LORD God made to grow every tree that is pleasant to the sight and good for food, the tree of life also in the midst of the garden, and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.

--every tree good to look at and good for food, and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. And we have eaten it all....

Hey God. it's margaret here. You know I have often ranted to you about putting something there in front of us and then saying 'no--don't do that' --with its succulent fruit right in front of our noses. You know I already know all that food stuff, manna from heaven, Passover lamb, bitter roots, sweet milk and honey... our exile from the true source, --paradise, the garden... which is why I sometimes imagine paradise as a swimming pool of tapioca pudding --or heaven as trees of dark chocolate and sips of merlot. But, now I know paradise/heaven is an avocado tart.... I am reformed. Repentant. Whatever. A new vision. So, let me say this: the ever changing canvas of food as paradise art/longing --the heart of your people --the expression through their hands of their desire to taste the produce of heaven once again is amazing and inspiring. And I am grateful to stand in that kitchen at that counter at that table where simple bread and wine are proclaimed H.O.L.Y. as a sign that all food is H.O.L.Y. --brought forth from the earth and shaped in human hands as a sign of heaven. And we name it. Remembering your very self as the only and true ingredient. In all things. You know. The desire of our Hearts. Amen.