The Zen of Prep

EVERYONE HAS SOMETHING THEY USE TO QUIET THEIR MIND

and get in a meditative and relaxed state. Some people play games, get on social media, read, exercise, write or meditate amongst a long list of lifes great escapes. For me its food preparation. It never fails to leave me in a more peaceful state than when I began. It’s the beginning, middle and end of any one set of tasks that elude me other than when making dinner. A real sense of satisfaction.

Prior to beginning to prep for any meal I organize the ingredients into the various dishes being served. Armed with a pantry filled with every imaginable glass, stainless or porcelain bowl, tray or dish to place the prepped items, I embark upon the most reflective part of my day. Often with music playing in the background, I consciously organize my thoughts from the day to file away what I had been doing to the task at hand, dinner.

I take out the chopping boards and the knives and decide what ingredients need to be prepped first. Then the chopping, cutting and grating begin. Ingredient by ingredient, I work through a pile of fresh vegetables, fruits, grains, greens and proteins until everything other than the salad is fully prepped. At this point I put up water, preheat the ovens or light the grill as an assembly line of food sits ready to get started. I am already in another state of mind than when I began. This is where dinner begins.

As the first items go to the next state of prep, I start the salad. We eat a salad with most every dinner. It doesn’t have to be cold and need not contain lettuce but is often the most colorful part of our dinner. For me, as a non-artist, this is my creative play space of color shapes and ingredients. Very few rules and restrictions. Exactly what is needed at the end of a day. By this time my focus has moved to getting dinner of the table and no longer has the lingering thoughts of my non-cooking day. This is the middle of the prep journey.

By this stage of the prep, I am consumed by the smells, sights and sounds of dinner in progress. Every single sense is engaged and happy. My focus becomes getting everything completed and coordinated to get dinner on the table or ready for later serving. This is where it all comes together and there is a real finished product. Hopefully, it will please my dinner mates as much as it helped me gain perspective on another day. This is the wrap, a real accomplishment and a new state of mind. This is my Zen place.

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