Prime Rib at Christmas

What conveys a bountiful message of old world Yuletide opulence and prosperity better than a mass of crusty, warm, pink prime rib?  

Beefy, hearty, satisfying; intense, heavy, juicy; tender, succulent, salty, delicious.

And decadent.  Decadent, yes, in that surely we could survive today with fewer calories, with foods that produce lower emissions and with greater awareness of the misery of others around the world.  We could do that.

Or we could eat prime rib and be thankful and celebrate all that is good in the world, and in so doing, resolve to be more productive, to be kinder, to be more helpful and to just be better at blessing those around us in 2019.  

We could be grateful that Kroger (and HEB) unfailingly put out huge supplies of Christmas rib roasts costing per pound little more than ground beef the rest of the year.  We could be grateful for the grocery store chain’s mastery of logistics and supply chain efficiency, allowing me to shop effortlessly and pay so little. We could be grateful for the ranchers who raise the animals and who, for the most part, continue to progress to more humane ranching methods.  We could be grateful for the skilled hands of those who butcher the roasts. We could be grateful for the chefs who share their time-honed experience (for free, of course) on YouTube. We could be grateful for the well-crafted, razor-sharp blades that make carving the prime rib and dissecting in on the plate so easy and so pleasurable.  

And so on, and so on, and so on.

Perhaps by partaking with awareness and gratitude, we can take a small step forward towards a future where we are more productive, more grateful and more aware of the genius of people and systems that surround us and quietly and imperceptibly create civilization, this condition of complete simplicity which seems easy but is so costly to so many.