House Dinner

Tuesdays are one of the main highlights of my life here in Lexington. There's just nothing else quite like 'em... and the biggest reason is because its the night we have House Dinner. Now, this started as a small idea, but grew unexpectedly the very first night that Theresa, Jen, and I were set to do a weekly meal on Tuesday nights back in Feb. of this year. The first night we planned it, Holmes got invited...which then turned into inviting Matt and Sunshine as well.So house dinner grew from the girls house to the boys house too, which honestly has been such a blessing. Every week we alternate who cooks, and now that there are a total of seven of us, it works out marvelously to get 6 weeks of Tuesday dinners without cooking. I love it. 

Tonight was my night, and so I made Chicken Marsala...and it went off without a hitch. Some weeks the table conversation is quiet, and other weeks it can be quite loud and gregarious. Last week we had Jana and Betty Cabell join us, in past weeks we have had Mandy's mom who was in town, or my dad when he was visiting. We can accommodate the changes well, and its always fun to see what everyone comes up with. You can count on Matt making something a little different in a culinary good weird foodie way, Theresa is typically healthy family cooking, I like to make something I never typically make, and who ever is next is usually questioned thoroughly about what they're thinking for the following week. 

In addition to the food, there is always a moment in there when I am sitting at the table listening to the conversations that buzz around a thousand miles a minute when I just think "wow, these are the days of our lives"...while a tacky catch phrase from a Soap Opera, its the truth. Four years ago when I moved here there would not have been the opportunity to do a house dinner. When I bought my house, it was my sincere prayer that the Lord would create a gathering place, would turn it into a home that welcomed anyone who wanted a place to belong, rest, laugh, eat, sleep, or live. In the past year I can see that prayer in more fruition and am so humbled by the way that people live in this home. We have our quirks, and that's not even referring to Theresa, Mandy and that I actually live here full time! But there are ways that I sense our hospitality is appreciated, for example: Matt sweeping off the leaves from the steps leading up to the garage, and Tex coordinating trash removal from all the small projects from the weekend and cleaning out the fridge. These are just two examples from the past few days that do matter to me, I do pay attention, and I so deeply appreciate these gestures that I did not even request. So while the empty cans of soda left on the end table, or the misc dishes from food consumed by guests can get tedious and annoying- the memory of small gestures like mentioned above are recalled to ease any sort of frustration. 

This house has brought challenges and joys but I am encouraged by the ways I have grown since April of 2006 simply by living here on White Oak Lane...and I am excited about the possibilities that exist in staying in Lexington, Virginia for a good while longer and the folks that will continue to make their way over to this house and hang out for awhile. Who knows who will be part of house dinner next year, as staffing changes at camp continue to cycle and people pursue other dreams...myself included. But tonight, over Chicken Marsala among six of my favorite people in this little town that I currently call home I said a prayer of thanks and a prayer of hope...a desire to stay, to continue to belong, and to continue to grow as we come to a table and share our lives over a meal each Tuesday night.