May 25: Frayed and Nibbled, Potluck, Another Good Day

I am a frayed and nibbled survivor in a fallen world, and I am getting along. I am aging and eaten and have done my share of eating too. I am not washed and beautiful, in control of a shining world in which everything fits, but instead am wondering awed about on a splintered wreck I've come to care for, whose gnawed trees breathe a delicate air, whose bloodied and scarred creatures are my dearest companions, and whose beauty beats and shines not in its imperfections but overwhelmingly in spite of them...

Dillard is talking about living in a broken place.  A world after the apple.  She speaks of getting old, the planet getting old.  Everything is frayed and nibbled, eaten by time.  Time is starved and ferocious.  It devours without any discrimination.

I needed a passage about eating this evening, because that's pretty much all I've been doing all day.  My coworkers at the cardiology office organized a going-away potluck for me today.  There were pretzels with cheddar beer dip.  A tray of fresh fruit--grapes and blueberries and melon and pineapple.  Grilled cheese sandwiches and pasta salad.  Some Christmas cookies (because of my habit of playing Christmas music on my workstation computer all year long).  My contribution was a brownie trifle.  It's my signature dish.

It was a lovely day.  I know, I know.  Two days in a row I'm sharing a post that is relatively happy.  It's a little unheard of.  But the food was really good, and it made me feel all warm and fuzzy.  Like a breathing Hallmark card.  Plus, I worked at my new/old job this morning again.  One of my best friends in the world works there, and we talked a lot about my sister.  It wasn't sad talk.  We shared stories about her and laughed together.

Mark your calendars again:  Saint Marty had another good day.