We're at the point where every meal is an adventure. Amaya may not eat everything we give her. She examines each bite, squishes things with her fingers, smells every bite, and then more often than not, manages to get it in her mouth. Sometimes she smiles, sometimes she shivers, and sometimes she screws up her entire face and recoils. No matter what the reaction, nine times out of ten she will taste whatever it is again. Amaya may not go in for the third bite but unless something is truly terrible she will give it a second chance. If something is good on the first try her entire face will light up and she will promptly throw anything left in her hands into the air in celebration. Needless to say meals are messy affairs. No matter what we set in front of her, she eats wholeheartedly with intense concentration and focus. Amaya loves to share the experience, checking often to make sure we're paying attention. It's a beautiful thing. Which doesn't mean that the mess doesn't make me a little bit crazy. It goes against my nature to let her toss food onto the floor. She can whip off her bib one-handed with a dramatic flourish and send it flying. She usually chooses to do so mid-meal. Amaya loves to share and happily feeds us bites of her food from her sticky fists.
For two people who love food and cook for a living her active participation in every meal is a revelation. Too often we rush through our own meals consumed by a thousand other things. We enjoy the first few bites and then slowly get distracted and accelerate through our daily meals. There's always a laundry list of other things to do. Watching Amaya is a reminder that even a simple meal should be celebrated. We should be able to take that extra ten minutes to feed our spirits along with our bellies. We should remember to enjoy our food.
