What’s Your Sauce?

It’s true that the older you get, the faster time flies. It tickles me to think that I’ve lived to an age that now allows me say things to my grandson like, “I remember what things were like at the turn of the century, and, “Y2K? Yes, I lived through that!”

Because I’ve lived more of my life than I probably have left I’ve begun thinking about what kind of legacy I’ll leave for my children and grandchildren someday. I’d like to believe that I will bequeath them something a bit more substantial than my grandmother’s red sauce recipe or my mother’s meatloaf recipe – but who am I kidding? Being half Sicilian — food has always been a big part of my heritage and culture so it’s likely that isn’t going to change at this point.

I’m blessed to be a grandmother who gets to spend a considerable amount of time with my only grandchild every summer break. Rather than spending the next two months listening to a constant litany of complaints that usually start with I’m bored and end with, there’s NOTHING to do, I like to use the summer break from school to work on my legacy with my 13-year-old grandson. Much the same way I used to do with my three children, I look for creative ways to entertain while at the same time creating memories that will impact him and perhaps help him find his niche in our family dynamic.

This summer I’ve decided to share with him some of my old family recipes. Our cooking time is a great opportunity to talk about my memories of bonding with my family over food. Food will help us deepen our relationship while at the same time serve to create memories that he can store away to share with his children someday.

Being the grandmother that I am, I feel it’s equally as important to share with him my legacy of my Lord Jesus Christ. Now that he’s a teenager, there’s a fine line between sharing my stories of faith with him without shoving Christianity down his throat. I’d like to think that my faith in Christ is the greater legacy to leave him and sharing my faith over a Sicilian cannoli merely sweetens my stories.

Your legacy may not be red sauce or cannolis, but every family has something to share and pass on to the next generation. Summers don’t have to be a prison sentence of long weeks of boredom for your kids. Summers don’t have to be all about video games! Why not use the dog days of summer to research your family’s history? If you’re blessed to have a spiritual family legacy to pass on, why not share your stories of faith over your favorite family foods?

Now that my parents and grandparents have all passed on, I regret not hearing all of their stories while I had time. It may be too late to hear their stories, but their legacy to me was family so that’s what I’m going to pass on to my grandson. We always think we’ll have more time … but do we really?

“So commit yourselves wholeheartedly to these words of mine. Tie them to your hands and wear them on your forehead as reminders. Teach them to your children. Talk about them when you are at home and when you are on the road, when you are going to bed and when you are getting up.” Deut. 11:18-19 (NLT)

Blessings in Christ,
Kathy K.