I was walking in the meadow with my daughter the other day and admiring the heavy crop of apples we have on our trees.  To me it is an endless list of opportunity for a delicious fall and winter, to her, it said “work”

Last year we made and canned apple sauce, apple pie mix, apple cider, and apple jelly.  Add to that the 300 lbs of plums, 200 pounds of peaches, and endless jars of hot peppers and hot sauce, I could understand her hesitation.

I havent even mentioned the dehydrator yet!  Dried apples, dried plums and dried hot chillies, and we spent weeks in our kitchen.

She remembers the sore hands, and constant peeling and cutting. I remember the conversation.  Talking about going back to school, her sports and activities.  Her friends, and her best moments of summer.

To me, sitting at that table with her and her sister was this perfect moment where not only were we filling our pantry, but we were also filling our souls.

We all have a different relationship with the food we eat, and surround ourselves with. I like to think that every morsel we grow here, or purchase, has a place in bringing our family together.  From planting the seeds, to picking the produce, to choosing items off the shelves, and packing sailboat picnics; each is a chance for us to choose and work together.

I love this video from ikea, how it shows this extreme version of how disconnected we are to the people who surround us at the dinner table.

This year I will work even harder to make our harvest a time for conversation and family fun.  It may mean we eat more of the warm apples fresh out of the dehydrator, or slurp more skinned peaches before putting them in the jar, but if we can laugh and enjoy our moment together, it will make the food taste even more delicious later. I want us to just relax and enjoy the experience, find the beauty in being in the kitchen together, storing nourishment for the winter. To enjoy the process, instead of looking at it as a chore.

I mean, the journey and the results should be the reward.