GATHERING THE CLAN
posted on
December 11, 2014
GATHERING THE CLAN
Gathering the clan creates potency.
Bringing the tribe together is a rewarding and complicated process, leaving one enriched by personalities, exhausted by endless efforts, relieved by termination, and hopeful for the next round. As we gather during this season of celebration, we present ourselves with much to navigate. One phenomenon is the clan is always changing, yet it is constant as a whole. Our children, parents, and selves keep naturally evolving and moving outward. They and we also marry or bring partners to the fore, who thankfully instill new vigor and shift old patterns. The group feels homogeneous from the outside, but is percolating with unruly life on the inside, forging strength for the future.
At the same time, familiar rituals reinforce timeless context that is deeply comforting. Deep comfort is a rare thing, that beckons clan members at a primal level from far and wide. Comfort comes from familiar expression, familiar environment, and familiar food. Sometimes a gathering is fortunate enough to offer all three, but of the three the most potent may be the food. Food evokes memories the way few other stimuli do. So, if we care about keeping the clan together, it behooves us to serve them real food, shaped by our own hands as much as possible. Time has proven the clan will come running for a real meal! Beef short ribs and mashed potatoes, as below, are guaranteed to affix to the soul.
May your clan gather and be well fed during all seasons.