grandma's dish

this dish is nothing elaborate. it's just root vegetables sauteed in olive oil. in a big ol' skillet (or two) for about an hour. i threw together squash, tomatoes, potatoes, green peppers and onion for ours. but this dish is special. it reminds me of my grandma. of sitting outside smack dab in the middle of a sunbeam. and this year, it reminded me of my neighbors. who gladly gave us the bounty from their gardens. there's something special about eating from the land.

i thought this dish wouldn't take long. i was wrong. i thought, oh it's just sauteing vegetables. no big deal. but i sat in the kitchen last night with pablo while robert napped on the couch. and the time crawled. but that's okay. it gave me time to water the plants on the windowsill. to go outside and check on our little strawberry plant. slowing down is good sometimes. and it felt right, being in that kitchen. on those yellow and green paisley linoleum floors. feeling the sweet juxtaposition of being young and in my twenties. in an old house where another couple lived out an entire life.

and later that night, eating grandma's dish. the one she taught my mama to make. and recharging the cycle of life that spins so furiously on.