Thoughts from Mark "Hat" Rackley

Boilerplate

I’m Harold Dykstra.  I’m retired, but I go to food bank distributions all over Tracy and talk to people that need someone who will listen to their story.  My time is well spent.  A police lieutenant suggested that I write down the conversations that I had with an angel.  I did not know she was an angel at the time.  The angel, for a little over a year, indwelled a life-sized posable action figure my children bought me, so that I would not be perceived as travelling alone.  And in a way, she was training me for what I do while talking to the needy.  She probed my heart to find out what I believed and how I express love for others.  She changed my life.

In her leaving, she said someone would come.  I had thought that was Jesus, in His second coming, but a new Babs, a little older, the model for the posable action figure arrived.  While I had no desire to start over with romance, Morrie helped her move in, thinking she was the other Babs who had returned.

This Week’s Question

Last week, Babs and I talked with Jayke, Janella, and Little Joe about their favorite remembrances of our vacation.

This week Babs was enjoying a meal that I had prepared.

Babs asked, “What is this dish called?”

I shrugged, “I just threw things together.  What do you want to call it?”

Babs said, “Delicious!”

I sighed, “I think we need to have a more descriptive name.  If you asked me to fix delicious again, I would start thinking about a lot of what I cook was not delicious.”

Babs smiled, “I think all your food is good, but I have never had okra and parsnips before.  What all is in this?”

I smiled, “I put the London Broil in a pan with water and covered it.  I placed carrots, parsnips, and okra in the pan and boiled it for a long time, about four hours, turning the meat over so that no part got dry.  Then I stir-fried cubes of potatoes in a blend of spices: Parsley, sage, rosemary, and thyme.  Like the line from the Paul Simon song.  I also ground cilantro and added that.”

Babs scrunched her nose, “I was wondering why the potatoes were green.  Was all this food allowable for the Jews?”

I nodded, “Vegetables are kosher, but only after careful inspection to ensure there are no bugs on the vegetables.  Of the things in this dish, the inspectors would carefully check the parsley, cilantro, and okra.  ‘All flying insects are unclean to you; do not eat them.’ (Deuteronomy 14:19).”

Babs gasped, “So, when I swallowed that fly last week, that was a sin?”

I laughed, “It was an accident.  We were on the back porch, and you yawned at just the wrong time.  Don’t worry about it.  God understands such things. ‘After he had left the crowd and entered the house, his disciples asked him about this parable. “Are you so dull?” he asked. “Don’t you see that nothing that enters a person from the outside can defile them? For it doesn’t go into their heart but into their stomach, and then out of the body.” (In saying this, Jesus declared all foods clean.)’ (Mark 7:17-19).  So, do not worry about accidentally swallowing a fly, other than doing that is unpleasant at that moment.  But it is more than just flying bugs.  ‘“‘Every creature that moves along the ground is to be regarded as unclean; it is not to be eaten. You are not to eat any creature that moves along the ground, whether it moves on its belly or walks on all fours or on many feet; it is unclean. Do not defile yourselves by any of these creatures. Do not make yourselves unclean by means of them or be made unclean by them.’ (Leviticus 11:41-43).  So that covers a lot of creepy, crawly things.”

Babs said, “I guess we were naughty when we ate that bison barbecue on our vacation.  They said that the barbecue sauce had rattlesnake in it.”

I nodded, “But Babs, while the Jews follow the kosher laws, we are not restricted by that.  Remember the sheet lowered in Peter’s dream. ‘The voice spoke to him a second time, “Do not call anything impure that God has made clean.”’ (Acts 10:15).  There were no insects on the sheet, at least none mentioned, but there were reptiles.”

Babs sighed, “I was filming on location in Asia.  I ate all kinds of things that were absolutely horrible.  Sea cucumber was the worst.  Mark Twain talked about fish that is three days old.  You cut into a sea cucumber and it smells and tastes like fish that’s three weeks old.”

I asked, “And how can you tell?  Have you eaten fish three-weeks old?”

Babs scrunched her nose, “I have thrown out fish that’s one week old just because of the smell.”

I said, “But to answer your question… ‘Of all the creatures living in the water, you may eat any that has fins and scales. But anything that does not have fins and scales you may not eat; for you it is unclean.’ (Deuteronomy 14:9-10).  So, that shrimp dinner that we had a couple of days ago would be a no-no.  When we had that catfish fry on our honeymoon, that would not be kosher.  Catfish has fins, but no scales.”

Babs sighed, “That’s too bad.  I loved that dinner.  Fried catfish, hush puppies, and cole slaw.”

I smiled, “And the cole slaw would have to be inspected carefully for bugs.  Any leafy vegetable, but then add broccoli and cauliflower to that list.  It’s okay to eat, once you know that you are not eating bugs.”

Babs asked, “What’s worse than finding a worm in the apple that you are eating?”

I replied, “I have heard the joke before, but I will play along.  What is worse than that, Babs?”

Babs giggled, “Finding half of a worm in the apple.  I am sure that is one of those creepy, crawly things God was talking about.“

I smiled, “Yes, I think you are right on that one.  And even with God claiming that it was now clean to eat, I might not want to try it.  But I have eaten chocolate covered insects.  You taste the chocolate and then you convince yourself that the crunch is the same as the crunch in your usual grocery store candy bar.  You know, puffed rice usually.”

Babs scrunched her nose, “What about crawfish?  I loved eating those in season.  In fact, they are still in season now.”

I laughed, “Babs, that is an unusual animal.  They are also called ‘mudbugs.’  They look like a miniature lobster, but they are not sea creatures.  But they are among the creepy, crawly food.”

Babs asked, “But don’t they live in the rice paddies along the Gulf Coast?”

I smiled, “Babs, that’s how they harvest them, and how the season is determined.  The rice farmers flood the paddies to plant the crop.  And the crawfish that have burrowed into the mud will then back out.  The farmers then gather them in nets.  They are freshwater animals, so when you put them into salt water, the crawfish will evacuate their bodies, from both ends.  They are not fit to eat until after doing that, a process called purging.  They are edible, but not that tasty if not purged.  It’s kind of like the bugs on vegetables.  You have no idea what the crawfish have been eating.”

Babs giggled, “But why are so many foods considered unclean?”

I laughed, “Just think about the foods that are on the unclean list.  ‘You may eat any animal that has a divided hoof and that chews the cud. However, of those that chew the cud or that have a divided hoof you may not eat the camel, the rabbit or the hyrax. Although they chew the cud, they do not have a divided hoof; they are ceremonially unclean for you. The pig is also unclean; although it has a divided hoof, it does not chew the cud. You are not to eat their meat or touch their carcasses.’ (Deuteronomy 14:6-8).  It is thought that many of the unclean animals were carriers of ringworm and tapeworm.  When you cook pork, fish, just about any meat, you need to be sure to reach the proper internal temperature.  Wild animals are more prone to such parasites, especially the bear.  I personally think that the food restrictions were there as safety measures.  Notice that scavengers, those animals that feed on dead carcasses, those animals are unclean.  So, the possible presence of parasites or not knowing what unclean thing the animals ate, and that meat might not be safe.  They did not eat meat found dead.  ‘He must not eat anything found dead or torn by wild animals, and so become unclean through it. I am the Lord.’ (Leviticus 22:8).”

Babs said, “But, Harold, what if I nibble on your ear?”

I sighed, “I have no idea if that is prohibited in the Bible, but be gentle.”

Babs leaned over and nibbled a little.  She giggled and kissed me on the cheek.

Then we heard Sugar howling in the backyard.

I sighed, “And now, our little dog is letting us know that we had ignored her for a week and a half.  ‘The righteous care for the needs of their animals, but the kindest acts of the wicked are cruel.’ (Proverbs 12:10).  I don’t know if she needs attention, but she wants some.  Let’s continue this discussion on the back porch.”

We sat on lounge chairs and watched the sun set in the distance, while Sugar walked between the two of us to see which one of us would scratch the right spot.  She settled on Babs and crawled onto her lap.  I never thought of a beagle as being a lap dog, but the two ladies in my life seemed to like it that way.

But then Sugar growled and barked.  Her ears perked up, and she jumped down from Babs, ran into the backyard and into the trees at the bottom of the invisible fence.  Sugar sensed an animal to chase.

Credits

All these conversations remind me of my conversations with my wife.  We would talk about anything and everything.  And most of the time, it sounded like a discussion in a Sunday school class.

The meal that was described was prepared by my son, basically throwing together what he had available.

Soli Deo Gloria.  Only to God be the Glory.