The Season for Sharing
Sharing food is more than just a sign of hospitality. It’s deeply human.
One of the heroes of my early life was a man on a white horse. But the story did not involve a girl wearing fancy outfits. Instead, it was about a remarkable Roman officer who, on a winter‘s day — when he himself was comfortably dressed on his warm horse and wrapped in a large, good coat — decided to share. He saw a man at the gate of the city, freezing, without proper clothing and a warm house to protect him from the cold. So, he drew his sword and just cut his large coat in halves. He kept one half and gave the other to the poor man. I thought that was an amazing thing to do. And a lot different from the other stories with the horses, nice coats, and swords. Of course, I was very young then, and Sunday mornings were filled with listening to interesting tales about good people and mostly drawing out pictures of the stories we had just heard.
The eleventh day of November marks not only St. Martin‘s day of death, but also the shift of the seasons. The last harvest is in, food is stored up, the wine making is over. Some time ago, it also indicated the day when farmers had to pay their taxes from the bounty they had that year. Seasonal workers were let go with food to last them on their way home. Poor town‘s people went into the country to get food supplies for the winter from kind local families who had enough to share.
Later, ‘Martini‘ turned into a day when children would walk in long processions with colorful lanterns to meet at a bonfire, where they got baked goods. On the way, they walked by their neighbors, who gave them sweets. The date stayed, the customs changed a little, but the common denominator lasted: Sharing.
Late autumn and early winter are the times of year that are especially rich with food traditions and food culture around here. Which makes a lot of sense, if you think about it: The summer, time of plenty, has passed, and the coming colder and darker days remind us of how volatile “plenty” or just “enough” can be at times. So, to be ready to share means, also: “I believe in sharing. This time, I have something to give; maybe next time, I will be the one who needs a little help or food.”
Seasons change. It’s time we lit the candles to signal we care.
Side Notes:
- Sharing is a veritable way to reduce food waste, which is one of the main challenges in our current food system. The new report of the EAT Commission and their update on the ‘Planetary Health Diet‘ clearly pointed that out (see [Sidewalk Scenes of October 25] and [InfoBytesSized] page under “Think Oval” for more info). It is really interesting how those two topics link. In fact, a few of the aspects I talked about in the last feature (see summary of ‘Reduce Waste‘ feature [‘Thank You, I’m Good’]), have to do with that. Like the Table Talk with Johanna from RESTLOS GLÜCKLICH e.V. [‘Curious Customs‘]. So, if you baked too much, instead of letting it go bad in the fridge and end up in the waste later, maybe give the neighbors some. I‘m sure they like cake as well. 😉