A Recipe to Know by Heart

What would it mean to have the heart cook? To see it show up in its cozy kitchen and plan the menu for the day? Imagine it sitting down with the frayed back of a used envelope and a worn-down pencil stub. With its tendril-like fingers, examining the teeth-mark indentations on the squat #2.

 

This heart—pulsing, beating, vibrant red—pausing to ponder the perfect ingredients. At the top of the envelope penning the words: 

A recipe for love. Learn this and follow it closely each day of your life.

• ·      Gather a large container—one vast enough to hold a lifetime of delight.
• ·      Add a cupful of compassion
• ·      One part curiosity
• ·      Another part compassion
• ·      A handful of joy
• ·      A mishmash of sorrow

Mix for several years until well combined.

Stir in a pinch of sweetness and a skosh of bitter.

Blend some more.

Pour into heart-shaped tins.

Bake until the outsides crack and the centers are warm and gooey.

DO NOT COOL. Keep warm to the touch. Break open and share liberally with everyone you know—family, friends, strangers on the street. Scatter crumbs generously. Watch them sprout in glorious  and unexpected ways.

Inspired by the writing prompt: "A recipe I know by heart"  What recipe do you know by heart?