By: Misty Murph'Ariens

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Once upon a time, there were two foodies.  Food, for them, was not so much a means of sustenance, but a kind of religion.  It was the philosophy they lived by—the guiding principle of their lives.  The major tenet: find incredible ingredients, prepare them as lovingly as possible into delectable creations, then enjoy sharing them with everyone.  Childhood was filled with pretending with food.  False rhubarb was rolled up with mud and served as 'cabbage rolls' to tree stump patrons.  Clay was skillfully kneaded and shaped into french loaves.  Birthday presents meant a grocery budget to self-cater the dinner party of their dreams.  Christmas stockings were filled with clementines, dark chocolate, almonds and dates.  Mother's day brought breakfast in bed with waffles and fanned strawberries.  Bonding with dad meant inventing seasoning rubs for smoked brisket or grilling shark steak.  Early jobs were pizzerias and prep kitchens.  Eventually, they were drawn to pursuing culinary careers and each attended culinary college.  Drawn to one another by their mutual passion for cooking, they fell in love, making for each other braised veal osso bucco, firecracker shrimp fettucini alfredo, chocolate mousse pie.  They each went to work as chefs in restaurants, exploring all that professional cooking had to offer.  But, their busy work kept them from each other.  They discovered that restaurant owners were not as much interested in gastronomic excellence as in their bottom lines.  And, search as they might, high quality raw ingredients alluded them.  They saw restaurants increasingly serving mass-produced 'foods' that were neither nourishing nor satisfying.  Deeply moved by this injustice, they set out on a great quest for good food.  Their journey took them to the woods and streams, sampling cat-tail shoots, spring cress, fiddleheads, wild ramp, violets, elderberries, mushrooms and crayfish.  They searched far and wide for comprehensive farmers markets purveying local artisinal cheeses and sausages and fresh organically grown produce.  However, what mostly was found was American boxed fruit at cheap prices and a few sporadic small scale food producers.  They found that not only had good, nutritious food all but disappeared, but everyone had all but forgotten it. This situation seemed frightfully amiss, so they resolved to correct it.  They felt that since eating was so crucial to survival and fundamental to happiness, it should be made in the absolute best way possible.  The healthiest, tastiest, and most sustainable way possible (after all, they wanted to go on eating for as long as possible).  So, they decided to make it themselves.  They bought a farm where they would grow fruits and vegetables, and raise animals for eggs, milk and meat.  They learned to churn butter, make cheeses and smoked sausages.  Extra produce was made into pickles, relishes, salsas, jams, jellies and preserves.  Their daily life became one, more or less, of planting and feeding food, harvesting food,  learning about food, cooking and eating. They discovered that gourmet food was actually invented to make use of all the fresh produce that a farm provided daily. They discovered that the most sustainably produced food happened also to be the tastiest, that happy food was healthy food. These discoveries were monumental, and they felt they had to share them with the world.  They cooked for friends and neighbours, they catered to earn their living, hosted educational cooking shows, gave talks about sustainable food production, and even wrote about food. They lived food, and they found that it was a good life.  They gardened, they learned, they worked hard, they loved, they ate well, laughed often and lived happily ever after.

May we, together, bless this food.
May we all recieve its full benefit,
nutritionally and spiritually.
May we all make full use of the energy it provides,
and, May we, in turn, feel blessed
that we may share this energy
in good company and good health. Amen.