Desire: A SpringThing

A Simple Kitchen Contemplation

Spring is here! Dainty wild violets bloom in the newly-greening grass. Daffodils along the river’s edge raise their yellow heads to the sun, and in city flower beds tulips burst in an amazing array of colours. Fresh spring spinach, tender greens and other early delicacies come from the fields to local market gardens.  Zen-cuisine invites us to celebrate these new beginnings with this simple kitchen contemplation.  What is our deepest desire in the kitchen this spring? Can we make a commitment to choose, purchase and prepare food to enhance our health and well-being? 

Our desire to benefit others as well as the planet is reflected in our cooking. As we prepare food, we nurture inner peace. It is our desire to live fully, enjoying the present moment and shaping a healthy, positive future. Zen-cuisine encourages us to touch the center of our being and investigate the kind of energy we bring into our meal preparation.  We can empower ourselves through this simple contemplation: what is our intention in the kitchen? What do we desire?  

Zen master Thich Nhat Hanh says ‘desire’ is a kind of food that can nourish and give us energy. Knowing what we truly desire is a life-sustaining practice. It enhances clear thinking and awareness. We feed ourselves with wholesome desires such as our wish to promote healthy living or to protect our well-being. We may want to sustain local agriculture or care for the environment. The mindful investigation of zen-cuisine enables us to identify and change thoughts and actions.

We can create conditions that bring about the inner peace and joyful, abundant living we so desire for ourselves and others. Spring is a wonderful time for a deep, mindful look at what we truly wish to do in the kitchen. If we sit for a moment in stillness, listening to the life-sustaining rhythm of our breath, we touch the interdependent nature of this flow of experience we call living. We choose to live a simple, balanced lifestyle, caring for and cherishing ourselves and our loved ones. 

We know what things are the ingredients in a recipe for well-being.  As we embrace these good-hearted qualities, our desires bring us happiness and contentment in our life, and especially in the kitchen. Happy cooking! Visit Juicy Foods!