Potluck and the Fruit of the Spirit!

"Grandparents Day" was yesterday, (Sunday, September 7), and the 'Nurture Committee' of the church held its annual "Grandparents Day 'Potluck' Luncheon." This had been advertised in the church newsletter and for several weeks in the Sunday bulletins, so people knew that this event was happening and they were asked to bring something to share.

Now, 'potluck' is just that... one never knows what might show up on the table. That's not a bad thing, though, but one hopes that there will be more than just desserts!

Some communities might have a system where a few select people will call others and ask them to bring a covered dish -- either of their own choosing or something that might be suggested by the caller, just to make sure each food group is covered.

Some other group might divide the alphabet and have the caller of each letter group ask for a specific type of dish, such as a salad dish, whether it be pasta, vegetable, fruit, or gelatin. Then another caller might call the second letter group and ask for some type of a hot casserole, whether it be macaroni and cheese, mixed vegetables, or meat. The third group might bring desserts of one sort or another.

These types of systems could work very well because then the committee, who is sponsoring the event, could keep a closer watch on what types of foods were expected.

We do not have that type of system... we just leave it to the individual and trust their judgment to bring an appealing and tasty morsel... and we are seldom disappointed. There is usually an assorted array of foods from soft drinks to desserts.

Yesterday, was no different. Several interesting foods were brought in. Someone brought in soft drinks, while another brought in a large fresh fruit salad, and still another brought a large cold-cut platter and rolls. We had a savoury hot rice dish mixed with polish sausage and vegetables, a cold rice salad with water chestnuts and mandarin oranges, a Chinese-style chop suey, macaroni salad, potato salad, a cole slaw with green grapes, baked macaroni and cheese (not that boxed stuff with the powdered cheese -- yes, from me, who else!), and an array of various cakes and cookies, plus coffee and tea for those who prefer hot drinks.

As always, we had a nice luncheon. We may be a small group but one thing that I can say is that our 'potluck luncheons' prove that the folks are not just generous in their spirit of giving but in their spirit of love. After all, isn't that what the "Fruit of the Spirit" is all about? Love!