Christmas

Last night, we spent the evening sampling several soups at the Unitarian Universalists’ Christmas Eve service. The soup sampling followed a carol-fest in which the church choir sang carols, often with the audience chiming in. And there were readings sprinkled in among the music. In spite of the obvious Christian overtones amongst the musical tributes to the season, I found the experience interesting and enjoyable.  We attended out of curiosity about the soup-sharing component of the evening (though my wife does enjoy Christmas caroling). I love the idea of communal feeds. I love the idea of sharing the bounty of one’s kitchen with others. Something about gathering with like-minded people (though how like-minded we are is open to debate) and sharing the fruits of our collective culinary labors appeals to my core.

Our contribution to the event was Berliner kartoffelsuppe mit knackwurst (AKA Berlin-style potato soup with knockwurst). We fully expected to bring quite a lot of the monstrous crock pot full of soup home with us. But the pot was empty when we loaded it into the car after the event; apparently, last night’s crowd was partial to potatoes. I vowed to my wife that I would make another batch of the soup so she could partake of it; she did not have any of the soup before it disappeared.

And, so, our Christmas eve has gone the way of history. Today, we’re facing Christmas 2016. I awoke before four o’clock today and just finished my coffee, but I’m tired, so I will go back to bed for awhile. Lest I forget later, after I’ve satisfied my need for sleep, I wish everyone a Merry Christmas or Happy Holidays or whatever is appropriate to your celebration of the season.