In The Small World Category

I took a meal yesterday to someone who is recovering from surgery. That's not very unusual. But there's a story about the one who received the delivery that is unusual. Let me tell you the story.

About 10 years ago we sold our mother and daddy's house. It's the house they bought before I was born. Unlike my granddaughters who have lived in multiple houses in multiple states, I lived in one place from the day I was born until the day I went away to college. So you can imagine the memories that were in that house. But the time came to sell it.

A young woman (the age of my daughter) bought the house. I didn't know her. In a small town, it wouldn't be unusual to know the buyer, but I had lived away from my hometown for years. I met her when she came to view the house. I saw her again at the closing. And that was it. For a couple of years anyway.

During those two years I became seriously interesting in knitting. I wanted to take my knitting to a level beyond the knitting I had done since my teen years. And during that period of growth, I discovered Ravelry, a social media/data base for knitters.

I knew I needed to be with other knitters. To learn from those with more skills that I had. I didn't know anyone who knitted, so I posted on a Ravelry forum (on a board for knitters in my part of our state) asking if there were knitters nearby interested in meeting and knitting. I only had a couple of replies, but one of those names sounded familiar. We messaged back and forth a few times and I finally asked where she lived. She was living in the house where I grew up. And she was a knitter. A knitter with more skills than I thought I'd ever acquire. Such a surprise but a good one.

But she worked and was busy, so we never arranged a get-together. We would occasionally comment on each other's projects on Ravelry. And we connected on Facebook and I would see something there every now and then that she posted. Like when a couple of weeks ago I saw that she was having surgery. Those were our only contacts.

Now...I have more cooking skills than knitting skills (although my knitting skills are catching up) so I sent a Ravelry message to her and asked if I could bring her supper one night. I used Ravelry because I didn't have an email address or a phone numberer her. She seemed delighted at the prospects of a home cooked meal. So I delivered her supper last night. And I met the knitter who bought Daddy's house.

I wasn't worried that it would be upsetting to see the house and all the changes it had undergone. I'm okay with change. But it was in the slightly weird category. Things were the same but they were different. The hardwood floors under the carpet that I walked on had been refinished. A large sofa sat on the wall where we had a tinkly upright piano that I played all the years I took lessons. A bedroom was now an office. Hmmm...wasn't there a door on that wall?  She and her husband continue to work to update things so more changes are coming. And that's as it should be. A house is a living thing that needs to change and adapt to keep going. We've done exactly the same kind of things here where we live to make it work for us now.

Anyway, it was interesting to have a look at that old house and see its current incarnation. And it was fun to meet another knitter. For the record, I did find my knitting group a year or so later in my other town. (We live on a farm between two small towns.)

Here is the meal I took. I'm posting it here so that I can remember what worked well, so that the next time I want to take food I'll have a ready made menu. You can use the links to find the recipes.

    

Baked Rotini is always a hit. This was a dish that a friend brought to Mommy when she was on bed rest before Baby Girl was born. The friend said it was what she always took when someone needed a meal. We know why—it's delicious comfort food. Since this was going to a two-person household, I divided the recipe and save one dish for this two-person household! My supper is ready to go into the oven tonight.

This Sour Cream Cinnamon Coffee Cake can be dessert, breakfast or a snack. A knitter from Ohio shared this recipe with me. She and I also connected via Ravelry and she came here to visit a couple of times. We still keep in touch. Knitters are good folks.

I love baking this Sourdough Bread and sharing it. But if you are not a baker, there are plenty of good options to buy. Sister Shubert's brand is a favorite of ours. And you can't go wrong with one of those five cheese loafs from the grocery store freezer.

I added a green salad and a container of fresh fruit to the tray. I was determined that the entire meal not be all carbs! This was a week when I had time to make an entire meal. But it's also a good and gracious thing to take a single item. Many years ago after I'd had back surgery, I remember a person from our church whom I didn't know very well coming by the house and bringing lemon bars. Thirty years later and I still remember her and the dessert. It's as much about knowing someone cares as it is about the food. Maybe it's more about knowing someone cares.