Slow Down for Sunday Supper

Can you believe we are already half-way through November? Only two more Sundays remain in the Liturgical Year C of Church. Soon we will begin all over again in our Gospel Readings. It only took us three years. I don’t know about you, but I really don’t remember Sunday Gospels from three years ago.

Heck, most of the time I wonder what I made for dinner last night. Some things stick with you, others don’t. Hubby and I have been watching a documentary on the assassination of JFK. They say if you are old enough to remember that day, you will recall in vivid detail where you were and how you learned of it. Hubby has no recollection. Much of his childhood is a blur. I remember the day well. A woman from the school office had gone from classroom to classroom, speaking with the teachers. She whispered in our teacher’s ear, and both women began to cry. The teacher told us to hurry, gather all our things and go home. Class was dismissed for the day. As I walked home, I saw women gathering together, crying. I could not understand what had happened, and I felt very much afraid. I remember well the Missals of October and our daily drills of duck and cover. Maybe we were at war. Years later, as the Gulf War began, I had the television on and could hear the air raid sirens. My son came into the dining room, bend down and said “Mom, why are you sitting under the table?” Without even realizing it, I had taken the position of duck and cover. Repetitive exercises ingrain habits into our brains that time cannot erase. Wouldn’t it be nice if we repeated Sunday Suppers over and over again as a family, and let that be a lasting part of who we are that is woven into the tapestry of our lives?

Those in my generation, and those before us have memories of Sundays to fall back on, to wrap ourselves in when times are hard or scary. The warmth of home fires and family life make us feel safe in a troubling time. As my children grew, we had our traditions. It’s nice to see those carried forward with our son and his family even though we cannot always be together.

I am grateful for the blessings I knew as a child. Even in the toughest of times and the darkest of nights, there was a sense of peace, of belonging, of comfort. Slow down, enjoy the moments we have now. They will not come again.

Garlic Rosemary Pork Tenderloin and Baby Potatoes
1 lb Baby Red Potatoes
1 lb Baby Yukon Gold Potatoes
4 tablespoons Olive Oil, divided
2 springs fresh Rosemary
4 Garlic Cloves
1 lb Pork Tenderloin
Salt to taste
Black Pepper to taste
1 cup Chicken Stock
1/2 cup White Wine

Scrub both red and gold baby potatoes. Place in a bowl. Toss with 2 tablespoons olive oil. Set aside.

Strip Rosemary Needles from sprigs, mince. Peel and mince garlic. Sprinkle half of the Rosemary and garlic over the tenderloin. Season with salt and pepper. Sprinkle the remaining half over the potatoes. Place potatoes in the bowl of a slow cooker.

In a skillet warm remaining 2 tablespoons of oil. Once hot, sear pork on all sides. Place browned tenderloin on top of the potato bed in the slow cooker.

Whisk together chicken stock and wine. Pour over the pork and potatoes. Cover and cook on LOW for 6 hours or HIGH for 3 hours or until potatoes are fork-tender and the pork is cooked through.

Lift tenderloin from the slow cooker, place on a serving platter and slice. Surround with the potatoes. Drizzle with juices from the slow cooker and serve. Delicious with buttery young peas to enjoy.

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Sing praise to the LORD with the harp,
with the harp and melodious song.
With trumpets and the sound of the horn
sing joyfully before the King, the LORD.
The Lord comes to rule the earth with justice.