Would you rather...

Today was a good food day. Just cereal and a banana for breakfast, but then watch out Emeril! I made a turkey, tomato, and mozzerella omelet for lunch. (I made a real mess on the stove though) Then I made cheeseburgers on the grill and garlic and pine nut couscous for dinner. Yummmm! It gave me hope for the future and all those meals I'm gonna be cooking for my family. It's not that I can't cook, it's just that I typically don't like taking the time, and I also don't usually have ingredients to plan a real menu. But it reminded me of a conversation I had last weekend. I asked my dinner companions to choose three things that they would love to be really good at besides their job. I enjoy coming up with questions like this that I think reveal more about a person than "What's your favorite jelly belly flavor?" I think secretly I'm storing up good first and second date questions, but that's beside the point. My three things were cooking, conversing in a way that really allowed me to get to know another person (not just know about them), and self-discipline when it came to things like procrastination and over-indulgence.
See what I mean? You already know so much more about me from those three little things. I really want to be a good cook primarily for two reasons. First, I love food. It's really that simple. I take great pleasure in the nuances of taste (and smell, see my last blog), and there are so many wonderful flavors out there to be experienced. Second, I think that food is a great medium for spending quality time with someone. Jesus thought so too and if it's good enough for Him, it's good enough for me. Wanting to be a good conversationalist reveals that I'm not, but also that I think it is important to really know the people that you spend time with. I like being surrounded by friends, and if I'm good at using conversation to get to know people, then I will always be surrounded by friends. And anyone who knows me knows that I have the weakest will power in the world. I did win the Study Avoidance Tactics Award for a reason, and I also have serious issues resisting the lure of chocolate, ice cream, coffee, that last piece of pizza, etc.
Okay, I concede that not everyone will elaborate as much on their three desired expertises as I just did, but I still think that it's a good question. It shows a person's (perceived) deficiencies as well as their passions, and that's as good a place to start as any when you really want to know someone.