Few things in life are as comforting as a warm slice of apple pie topped with a scoop of ice cream or the tenderness of a mother's hug. We begin life seeking comfort, emerging from the womb to the safety and warmth of our mother's breast.
The phrase "motherhood and apple pie" has a generally accepted cultural association with goodness and family values -- the things we all try to cling to when we're going through difficult times or when venturing into something new and unfamiliar.
During the early days of the pandemic, I sought comfort from the uncertainty of the lock-down by baking. Every few days, I baked a new batch of cookies, trying new recipes or returning to old favorites. I baked bread, something I hadn't done since my children were young, and of course, I had to make soups to accompany the freshly baked bread. Needless to say, my husband and I put on a few pounds, but we countered this with daily "sanity hikes" to parks and trails in the area and we discovered some new and beautiful places. Connecting to nature has always been a source of peace and reassurance for me, especially at times when humans were less than kind. With the virus lurking and crowded places deemed unsafe, open spaces and fresh, green growing things were a true salvation.
This morning, as I meditate on life a little more than a year past the start of the pandemic, when I and most of those I know are vaccinated and starting to feel an easing of that uncertainty, I am grateful for those sources of physical peace, as well as the spiritual solace provided by having extra time for prayer and silent contemplation. If there is something positive to be gleaned from this time, it is this finding of comfort in simplicity, this hearkening back to the basics of motherhood and apple pie.
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