Brian’s Reflection: Friday, May 18, 2007


A loaf of bread, a jug of wine, and thou.

- Omar Khayyam, Persian poet,
born on this day, 1048


Now, doesn’t that sound nice! So simple.

One early morning in the summer sunshine, a priest friend of mine and I walked down the ancient paved narrow street leading from the hilltop apartment we were staying in – a building that was first inhabited in the 14th century - in Menton in the south of France. The air was cool, the scent of the lemons for which Menton is famous drifting in the air. We stopped half-way down to stand in line for the baker to open her doors – and purchased a hot loaf of freshly baked bread, which we popped into our sack. Then to the bottom of the hill into the lower town, where we bought a jug (well, a largish bottle with a straw hoop to carry it) of a local red wine. Then we gilded the lily a bit, with a small bottle of dark olive oil and a little terrine de lapin (rabbit). We hopped on the local train, journeyed down the Mediterranean coast until we came to a favourite place near the sea, and there we spent the day.

Late afternoon, the loaf and jug became the Eucharist, and we felt like the disciples eating with Jesus on the shore. We both commented that we felt no separation - the bread and wine and the sacramental use we put them to were of one piece in feeding the whole of who we were. A nice reminder.

Who needs Alain Ducasse to be blissfully happy!

A loaf of bread, a jug of wine, and thou. Wise man, Khayyam.

Brian+