Making something from nothing

To create something from nothing is one of the greatest feelings, and I would - I don't know, I wish it upon everybody. It's heaven.

~ Prince

One of our granddaughter’s current favourite books is "Something from Nothing", by Phoebe Gilman. 

The story features Joseph, whose grandfather, a talented tailor, makes a star-speckled, blue baby blanket that the boy treasures. 

As Joseph grows, the blanket becomes worn and tattered, and his mother suggests that he part with it. But Joseph has a better idea. Grandpa will fix it. 

With a snip here and a snip there, over the years, Grandpa turns the blanket into a jacket, then a vest, a tie, a handkerchief, and eventually a button.

When Joseph loses the button, Grandpa cannot make something from nothing.

The story concludes with Joseph creating a story from the memory of the blanket, making something from nothing.

Living in day-tight compartments

 The load of tomorrow, added to that of yesterday, carried today, makes the strongest falter. 

~ Sir William Osler

After hosting extended family overnight for the better part of last week, I found myself thinking that I, too, would eventually be challenged to make something from nothing.

While hosting, to prevent stress, I was living in day-tight compartments, the first principle in Dale Carnegie’s book, “How to Stop Worrying and Start Living”. I focused daily on the task at hand, not worrying about what had yet to come.

Living in a remote location, we stock our pantry well enough to prevent the need to venture out for missing ingredients. We take pride in making do with what we have.

But we were invited to a potluck Thanksgiving celebration on Monday, and by then, the perishables had dwindled - not much left.

Finding a quarter of a red cabbage, a quarter of a white cabbage, a large carrot, a red and a yellow pepper, along with some herbs from the garden, I created a spicy Cole Slaw. 

With a frozen smoked trout fillet from the freezer, some cream cheese, lemon and dill, I made a dip.

I wasn’t sure this was sufficient, but when I was asked for the recipes and given much praise for my contribution, I realized I had successfully made something special from the remnants I had.