Breaking Bread — Greywire
Due to the lockdown and social distancing, we were not able to do what we had planned this year for Easter. So instead, we decided to do something we had traditionally done in the past with my father. We would go to a park and have a picnic of sandwiches consisting of that wonderful store bought fresh baked italian/french bread, salame, cotija cheese and bell peppers.
Only we can’t go to the park and we can’t go get the bread. But I like to bake bread, so this year I will bake my own. And so the thought of baking bread while in a pandemic lockdown got me thinking about the historical importance and significance of bread, and of sitting down with other people and “breaking bread”.
Now regardless of your religious inclinations, there is a story* that is significant to anyone. In this story, two men are walking and talking about some bad stuff that just went down, and they meet a stranger who invites them to break bread with him. And they don’t recognize him, until he shares bread with them.
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The simple act of breaking bread enables them to see that everyone has the capability to be kind, loving, generous and unselfish. Even to strangers. This is like seeing god in everyone, and seeing it by action. There was no preaching involved. Just a simple act.
After this interaction, they returned to where they came from even though it may be dangerous to do so. Because they saw something bigger at play, something larger than themselves, and they were no longer afraid. All that from breaking bread.
So for easter, we will break bread. And we will think about what’s going on around us, and in us, and how our actions define us, and the good in people.
Originally published at http://greywire.tk on April 13, 2020.
