Summer celebration of food, laughter, and friendship

break of dawn
Under the moon-lit sky

Summer is still coming but we were already in the midst of summer celebration.  The week started with a very long road trip before the break of dawn.  Everybody was at the designated meeting place and ready to go.  The pace of the travel was initially slow but gradually picked up and became more steady as we progressed.  Thankfully, it went very smoothly despite having a whole tribe of children cooped inside five vehicles.  Multiple stops were required to keep everybody comfortable and sane.

Poolside posse
Poolside posse

We arrived safely by late afternoon weary-eyed amidst sighs of relief and stretching of limbs.  The children were only too glad to be out of the vehicles and quickly ran to the summer vacation house to stake out their corner of the bedrooms.  Electronic gadgets were laid out but were quickly forgotten for the pool and the outdoors.  Destin, Florida, located at the northwest corner of the state of Florida panhandle, proved to be the type of tourist town that we liked.  Swimming and walking the stretches of powdery white beaches, deep water fishing, dining, sightseeing, and enjoying the warm weather were some of the things that we experienced.  Each day brought some new experience and each day brought smiles and laughter to faces.  The highlight of the day, though, was when everybody gathered for dinner, ate and drank to their heart’s delight, and enjoyed each other’s company.

Dinner preparation
Dinner preparation

Meals were prepared by the moms with dads and everybody else helping.  Now, when it comes to food preparation and selection, nobody can beat the moms of this group.  Everything was amazing!  The choices in the menu, the colors of the food, the texture, the spices, the taste – truly a delight to the palate!  They whipped up a feast from scratch at a blink of an eye! The whole process was done like a well-oiled machine.

Each culture, as we know, have their own culture food and this becomes the type of food that are sought for comfort.  However, we also know that we venture out of our comfort zone and seek food that are different but still acceptable.  This group wasn’t different.  Traditional food became first in the preparation and variations to the preparation were discussed.  The expert on a certain recipe stood at the center of attention and guided the preparation.  The novice looked on and asked questions.  The baton was then passed on when a new recipe came up and a new expert stood in the middle and roles changed.  Then, new recipes were also discussed.  Overall, expert became master and novice upgraded their skill.  The repertoire of food prepared were carefully laid out on the table and the announcement to dinner made.  Everybody gathered around the table and a prayer of thanks offered.

Food fit for a feast
Food fit for a feast

The food was prepared so well and so mouth-watering that everybody did not waste any time partaking.  Plates were filled and positioned around the table.  Conversation was  animated and very cheerful.  It was a pleasure to the soul to hear the chattering, the bantering, the giggling, the stories told of funny and interesting activities of the day, and the genuine glow of smiles on faces.  All this happened daily with food on the table, friends gathered around it, and happiness shared.

The week went by fast and the reality that we will be heading back to the daily grind of life was both sad and comforting.  Sad because we will be leaving an easy-going kind of life that we always dream of living.  Comforting because we will be going back to the kind of structured life that we worked hard to achieve.  We look forward though to doing this again!

The beach at Destin
The beach at Destin
Beach play
Beach play

9 comments

  1. […] clean water. The problem was, just like before, the road trip was going to be twelve hours long. Destin, Florida was similar but Orange Beach was closer to drive. The hour was dark thirty and well before the […]

  2. […] is always food, song, and laughter when my circle of friends gather.  I had written about this when my close circle of friends gathered one summer day.  It was not different with this kind of […]

    • Wonderful!! Now I will have another person to visit there! Honestly, I also thought of the same thing!

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