My Chair, 2013
I've eaten my lunch and although it was quite good I did not pay it much attention because I was perched on the edge of my bed pruning my reading list (it now holds 117 books) while eating. A terrible idea.
Tomorrow I will enjoy my lunch as Charles Arrowby does in The Sea, The Sea, seated in a proper chair, a cloth napkin draped across my lap.
But for now I must get back to work. I'd rather rent Oma & Bella, or return to The Sea, The Sea, or sleep for a bit. No, work first. Hmph. I know in the end it is what will most please me. Right after reading this excerpt one more time...
“It is after lunch and I shall now describe the house. For lunch, I may say, I ate and greatly enjoyed the following: anchovy paste on hot buttered toast, then baked beans and kidney beans with chopped celery, tomatoes, lemon juice and olive oil. (Really good olive oil is essential, the kind with a taste, I have brought a supply from London.) Green peppers would have been a happy addition only the village shop (about two miles pleasant walk) could not provide them. (No one delivers to far-off Shruff End, so I fetch everything, including milk, from the village.) Then bananas and cream with white sugar. (Bananas should be cut, never mashed, and the cream should be thin.) The hard water-biscuits with New Zealand butter and Wensleydale cheese. Of course I never touch foreign cheeses. Our cheeses are the best in the world. With this feast I drank most of a bottle of Muscadet out of my modest “cellar.” I ate and drank slowly as one should (cook fast, eat slowly) and without distractions such as (thank heavens) conversation or reading. Indeed eating is so pleasant one should even try to suppress thought. Of course reading and thinking are important but, my God, food is important too. How fortunate we are to be food consuming animals. Every meal should be a treat and one ought to bless every day which brings with it a good digestion and the precious gift of hunger.”
-- Iris Murdoch's The Sea, The Sea
i have never read murdoch.
ReplyDeletecannot think why.
it's on my shelf, so thank you, d., for the gentle shove i needed.
Enjoy, Lucy.
DeleteIndeed.
ReplyDeletexo J.
xo
DeleteWhat a beautiful description! Oh me too I have a too big book list (ordered yesterday 4 books from my list of 447) that really gets me a little bit nostalgic when I look at it...time....there's never enough time!
ReplyDeleteMine was in the 400s this past summer. I've narrowed it down. We'll never be bored.
Deletei'm a fan of the sea, the sea. so good.
ReplyDeleteI'm just beginning, but liking the beginning very much. I so want to visit Shruff End.
DeleteIt would be lovely if we all could be present in the moment, giving our lunch our undivided attention.But life does happen more often than not. Thanks for suggesting Oma & Bella--a documentary I will be sure to put on my list of must-sees.Hope you are enjoying Spring.We are still awaiting its appearance in the North East.
ReplyDeleteYesterday I had the most fantastical lunch to make up for a woeful one the previous day. Lunch, quite my favourite meal of the day, should always be enjoyed and given proper focus lest it leaves a bad aftertaste. Dissatisfaction is hard to shake off.
ReplyDeleteThanks for the gentle reminder to revisit The Sea, The Sea.
Charles is quite a character. I never know what he'll do next.
Deletewhat a careful, thankful, well worded description.
ReplyDeleteI just got this book in the mail: "The Hungry Ear: Poems of Food and Drink"
anthologized by Kevin Young. I think you, too, would love it.
Just borrowed it from the library today!
Delete
ReplyDeleteI enjoy reading such tight descriptions of what a person enjoys eating simply, in solitude, and at her leisure.
re: amelia--I think I would like that book too.
thanks for the suggestion.
What a beautiful excerpt. I'll get the book, it makes me long for more reading.
ReplyDeleteThanks for sharing!
How delightful! I must run to the library and get that book. I did read it once,ages ago, but it seems that it would be just perfect the second time around.(I think I eat too fast. I love food ,I should eat with more joy, thank you for reminding me)
ReplyDeleteHave a lovely Holiday Denisse.
The Sea, The Sea takes me straight to a holiday in Malta, years ago, during a patch when I read all of her books one after the other. I'm terrible at appreciating lunch: I may use a napkin and sit at a table, but always read during it and eat far too fast...Must try harder.
ReplyDeleteI like this trip to Malta filled with Iris Murdoch. Inspiring.
DeleteI liked this excerpt very much. Going to have to check out that book! I like the title 'The Sea, The Sea', and I like the idea of reading it in Malta like Kate.
ReplyDeleteIsn't there a scene with almonds and apricots in the The sea, The sea? I need to rescue my copy from the box in my parents garage! I know, I know, they are all curling at the corners. Anchovy on toast is one of my favorite things
ReplyDeleteHow does one make a proper anchovy on toast? I think it requires a post, Rachel.
DeleteGreat quote! These days, we could all use a reminder to slow down and enjoy our food. Thank you for this beautifully articulated reminder from another era. -Louisa
ReplyDeleteThe sea, the sea - thanks for that. And for Oma & Bella. There's nothing quite like giving up every shred of your attention to the food in front, just for a meal, in that moment.
ReplyDeleteCrikey 117 makes my bedside pile look positively microscopic! Thank you for the excerpt - there is something so very satisfying to sit and really notice (and enjoy) what one eats. It's as if allowing yourself to experience it fully, with all your senses, makes the whole thing feel so much more fulfilling, and memorable.
ReplyDeleteLove this. I'm writing it down so I remember it often.
ReplyDeleteThanks, everyone. I hope you are all enjoying a fine meal this evening. I'm eating strawberries.
ReplyDeleteDenise,
ReplyDeleteThis is beyond lovely, the passage, as well as the contemplation.
I haven't been by in much too long. Although, on the bright side, my absence has afforded my the indulgence of reading post after post.
Small boys, yodeling in trees, indeed!
Happy Spring to you,
xo,
Molly