Saturday Sushi

Matt and Joanna and Kaleb and Kaitlyn came for a visit today. They arrived in time for brunch, which was a true family affair. Linda made gluten-free waffles. Jared peeled and fried potatoes. Tiana set the table. Elena peeled onions. Patrick made a bunch of scrambled eggs. Daniel made tea and coffee. Christopher ran errands. And I took Linda's waffle batter and Elena's onions, and transformed them into onion rings that were truly yummy!

After brunch, we sat and chatted, dreaming about a patio and courtyard (Janet's dream) complete with a stone wall, or about a humongous deck (Rick's dream, remember?), and asking Matt what he thought about the whole idea. That got us to talking about Courtyards in Roman times, then about villas with gardens in the center of the home. We began designing a home, just for fun.

By then the rain had stopped and all the big people (except for pregnant Joanna and busy me) headed outside to do more yard work. Joanna cleaned my kitchen then went for a little nap, and I finished designing my dream house. The afternoon flew by with a million little tasks occupying my time and thoughts, then I got supper ready for the hungry workers.

Rick grilled hamburgers and chicken burgers on the barbecue; we had rice, corn, peas, sliced tomatoes and onions and condiments. Leftover waffles make great hamburger buns for celiacs, we've discovered, and are much better than bread done in the breadmaker. Supper was an enjoyable meal, with all kinds of bantering back and forth as we shared stories and experiences with each other.

Cleaning up took very little time, as I was smart enough to suggest using paper plates for the meal. Matt and Joanna soon left for an evening affair, and I decided to make sushi for tomorrow's lunch. I had the seaweed paper and lots of leftover sticky rice. We boiled a few asparagus stalks, and I opened a can of wild salmon. We cut up a few cherry tomatoes, and used up some leftover corn.

Here are the results:



They aren't perfect. Some are bigger than others. Corn is not usually an ingredient in sushi, as far as I know. But they taste good, and Linda whipped up six different dips to use, both for the sushi and for the veggie trays we'll have with them.

Now, I know my husband won't like them. He may force himself to taste one or two, but fiddly little things wrapped in seaweed won't impress him much. That's why I will make him a sandwich to eat for lunch tomorrow, before we sit through three hours of grueling instruction in Old Testament Biblical Theology!

Life is a bit like sushi: a lot of rice with some strange and wonderful additions, all wrapped up in seaweed. Rice is kind of mundane and plain, like the normal, everyday tasks we do, over and over again. They are a necessary part of life. The strange and wonderful additions add colour to our lives, much like the pink salmon, the yellow corn, the green asparagus, and the red tomatoes. Our lives are filled with holy interruptions - sometimes joyful, sometimes painful, but all designed to nourish us in our spiritual growth. The seaweed wrapped about the sushi reminds me of God, Who surrounds us every day with His grace and wisdom. He is what holds it all together!

Colossians 1:15 He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation. 16 For by him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things were created through him and for him. 17 And he is before all things, and in him all things hold together.