Life's Work

 

By: Misty Murph'Ariens

 

The day after catering the Holstein Bluegrass Celebration, Bryce and I walked on air. Despite being totally physically exhausted, we were so pleased at the work we had done. First, it is a rare blessing to be able to absolutely love working with your spouse. We both share a deep love of food—of nourishing people while making them happy. We do everything together and share many interests, but cooking together truly brings out the best in both of us. It was also so gratifying to be working with friends and neighbours who were so generous with their time, effort, resources and wisdom. The music was outstanding and we thoroughly enjoyed all the folks we met. One detail of this job was especially noteworthy to me, making this job one of the best we had ever done. We planned this weekend's menu with what I call the Hippocratic Oath of cooking: serve only food that you yourself would eat and enjoy. That way, not only can you feel proud of what you are serving, but you also prepare it better, because it is something you are passionate about. This oath, however, can sometimes be challenging for me, as I have especially high standards when it comes to food. Food need not be fancy to satisfy me, but I expect food to not only be tasty, but also a credit to the health of the person eating it. This doesn't mean it always has to be low in fat or sugar or whatever, but that it should be prepared thoughtfully, it should contain goodness and be in balance with all the other foods served. (For instance, did you know that 70-80% cocoa dark chocolate is an excellent source of iron? But, I​ digress...) Anyways, I think of everything very holistically, and I think that for something we all spend so much time doing, our job should not only make us feel proud, it should also make us happy. Well, this job had done just that, and being so upbeat and optimistic about the work we were doing, we were fantastically successful! So, with this in mind, Bryce asked me to look up the quote of the day in Meditations from Conversations with God by Neale Donald Walsh. I opened to August 12 and it read “Your life work is a statement of Who You Are. If it is not, then why are you doing it?” It no longer surprises me when such serendipitous things happen, so I just smiled and contemplated the full meaning of that quotation. I recalled a friend asking me a few weeks ago, if I could have my dream job, what would I do. I just smiled and she said, “Oh, right. You're doing it.” Some people comment that our lifestyle seems like a lot of work—and it is. But, to me, it is really living. After having both of my parents pass away before the age of 53, I learned that it is not so important how many years are in your life, but how much life is in your years. The time is now, and living is your life's mission.