When Adrienne asked me to write about a care package I delivered to a friend, I had to laugh. You see, I'm one of five girls and I am not the cook in the family. My sister Jean makes homemade cakes with seven ingredients and can whip them up in her sleep. She is the kind of gal that clips the recipes from magazines and the paper and actually cooks them. My late sister Susan used to make apples pies in the Fall with hand-cut apples on the crust. But me? Heck no, I just do my best to feed my family a healthy meal.
When I was sick years back, I loved receiving the meals. I knew that the O'Neill casseroles would be warm and nutritious; they arrived in matching casserole dishes and lasted three days. Carol made a recipe I've never used, it was wonderful and I was thankful not to have to cook and do the dishes that went along with family meals. The Chaves' ziti is one familiar to many, loaded with gooey melted cheese to warm your heart along with a bottle of red wine, bread and a salad. Those are the meals that I think of when folks pass the word that a meal is needed.
I shy away from that, my meals wouldn't be good enough, big enough or special enough.
But when Mary Anne was sick I was nervous, dang, she had to get better. She is my go-to gal! I called and emailed her. She said she was fine. She said, "Don't worry", but I wanted to do somthing. I could do a care package for Mary Anne, she didn't have a family of 5 to feed, no special diet restrictions.
I thought, I can do this!
So I made a special plate of homemade mac and cheese when I was making my family’s huge casserole, wrapped up some of my baked ham in a zip lock, and zipped up some salad. I knew she'd eat it, she was sick and her daughter's family was sick, too. She'd be hungry for something and couldn't get out of the house. I also grabbed some green tea bags and some candy treats from the snack drawers. Whew! I tied it up with a card and called it a package. It wasn't grand but it was something, and my friend was sick and needed it.
Mary Anne emailed me - the ham hit the spot! The next day, another email...the mac and cheese was wonderful. I was glad that she was eating; that meant she would keep strong and get better soon. She loved it all. I realized that even though my meal wasn't anything grand, it was all she needed. I think now when the call comes out for a meal, I'll do a mini package again!
Sometimes that is all that is needed.
"I give you a new commandment: love one another.
As I have loved you, so you also should love one another.
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Visit our Works of Mercy page to learn how you can share Christ's love with others
This is a wonderful piece and I appreciated it.
ReplyDeletePatricia