a recipe for life?

As I was sitting this morning with some dear church friends, gathered together to start a 3 day fast with prayer. I wondered, what is the recipe for life? And,... what recipe could I create to bring life,  or... give life?

I am struck by the different sets of values, that one must have on life. 

For us here in America, for good working or middle class people, isn't life all about working, friends and family, and when to get that bigger house or car? It seems odd to imaging that in the midd of our daily struggle to pay our bills, to be in time to church, or to even find time to call back a friend. In the midd of all that we forget that that's life? Is it? I mean, for real that is it!

How do I explain that mother in pomona, CA; that mother that barely finds food to eat for her 7 year old child, moving from shelter to shelter, because there is no affordable place to rent. How to explain her my life. Do you think her life is less than mine? 

How do I explain that Executive, driving an awesome car, leaving the house at 4.30 am just to be back at 11 pm, communicating with his/her daughter via blackberry. How do I explain him or her my life? Do you think his or her life is more than mine?

How do I explain that 5 year old orphan, living in the streets of Johannesburg my life? Is his life less than mine?

I wake up in the morning, watching my wife and my kids sleep, see the smiles on their faces.

I wake up and I thank God for another great day in his awesome world.

I wake up and I can't help to imaging a life like that little boy in Johannesburg, not being polluted by all our "society treasures", being content in the time I can spent with one toy.

What a life, being content, how amazing that sounds.

But what about the mother and the executive?

Of course, my westernized mindset wants me to be the executive, I would love that. The mother, no, that is just so sad, but I don't want to be the mother.

Why not? What did I miss? 

I think it is about finding the right mix, isn't it?

O I thought my ultimate recipe for life should be:

• 1 pc. of a loving
• 1 pc. of a caring mother 
• 1 pc. of a persevering mother
• 1 pc. of childish joy
• 1 pc. executive abilities
• 1 pc. endurance
• 60 pc. of Gods love

preparation:

Take the endless caring heart of a caring and persevering  mother,

mix it with childish joy in all you do, 

let rest for a while.

Add a lot of endurance and always be generous in your giving, 

as you have the abilities of an executive.

To this give and receive all of Gods love,

and your life is going to be truly worth it

preparation time: all days of your life

recipe difficulty: easy

introducing the kitchen project

Almost 2 years ago I went on a mission trip with a nonprofit humanitarian aid organization that supports disadvantaged children and families around the world.
We set out to renovate a small school in Tanzania, to be exact, in a small village called Mto-wa-Mbu, which means Mosquito Village. I was quite impressed by the warm welcome we received and the love we could feel in each one of the kids and teachers.
What caught my eye as a Chef, was how they actually heated water, how they cooked supper, and in general, how those 3 ladies prepared the food for some 300+ kids.
When I saw the big, old, aluminum pot, carefully balanced on three different sized rocks over an open fire, I was stuck somewhere between being in awe, and completely irritated. My professional trained mind could not comprehend doing such a thing, because it would take so long to actually heat water.

Immediately we all got together and decided we have to build a kitchen first. And we did. 6 guys, 5 construction professionals and a chef, decided that this would be the right thing to do.

We measured, collected mortar and rocks, hired a local ironsmith, and at the end of the day, there it was, an“L”-shaped kitchen station, complete with BBQ/Stove Top (made from black steel), preparation space and a sink (made from cement and bricks).

How good it was, how great we were, I mean, just to build it, we went through 6 different opinions, 6 different characters, and six different point of views, on how, where and what those 3 ladies need. Me, the Chef, had the biggest problem, because I had to go through accepting 5 guys' opinions on how to build this kitchen, even though of course “I knew best."

However, like I said, we made it, and it looked so beautiful.

When we arrived the next morning, nobody was using the kitchen! Again the pot with water was on the floor, and we were kind of arrogantly upset about that. We must have looked so irritated. Next day the same thing, these 3 sweet ladies tried, but it turned out they just didn’t like this way. They did not need a BBQ, they didn’t have chicken or meat anyway, not even fish.

They didn’t have more than 2 pots, so there was no sense in having a big brick kitchen counter for 5 pots.

Well, to be honest, I did not get it at that moment, but rather much later on our 46 hour trip home. I suddenly thought: maybe we should have asked them first what they really need.

That was it. I was ashamed of myself and astonished at the same time. How creepy. How could I expect to push my thinking and ways of doing on those 3 sweet ladies, who cooked daily for 300 kids with only 2 pots, for so long?

In that moment some 30,000 feet up in the air, an idea was born, to use my professional knowledge and talent to create an organization, that can communicate this knowledge in an effective way. What if, instead of building a kitchen, we simply start by bringing new pots? What if instead of building a preparation area, we first bring new ladles and spoons?

What if instead of forcing our opinion and direction on anybody, we first listen, learn and then evolve.

The kitchen project will do exactly that.

We will bring the tools.

We will create sustainable solutions, not a temporary fix.

We will adopt and evolve one's culture, to create and grow one's ability.

And ultimately, we will create economic opportunities by using our knowledge of hospitality.

Maybe one day, we will work together on this.