A Drizzle Of Olive Oil

Let's face facts. Life sometimes goes pretty fast. There are parties to plan, bikes to ride, dinners to cook, books to read, calls to make, blogs to update...and that's just the fun stuff.

It can be hard sometimes to remember to slow down, to take pleasure in the moment.

But with the help of a bottle of olive oil, it's a lesson I remembered the other day.

It was the middle of the week, that time in between weekends when everything is in motion, when it can sometimes seem that one mis-step will have major repercussions on the subtle balance of the household (though I hasten to add it isn't actually true: we're a family not a covert military operation, and nothing is that important - it just seems that way).

I was making a quick salad to go with the banquet burgers we were having for dinner. And I was making salad dressing. With my new bottle of good olive oil at the ready, I made to mix up the ingredients. I turned the bottle of oil upside down and watched as it drizzled, slowly, out. Slooooowly.

My first thought, I admit, was I don't have time for this. We had a guest arriving, homework to finish, and a pile of laundry sat waiting to be folded.

Squeezing the glass bottle was futile - yes, I tried - so I had no option but to stand there and wait.

And something wonderful happened. I watched the oil drizzle slooooowly out into the cup, and I felt my shoulders relax, the world slow down, and the kitchen become suffused with peace and tranquility.

The only thing that mattered right then in that moment was the golden olive oil, the smell of garlic, the roasting cashews, the sunbeam that floated through the window bathing the red tiles in rich colour. Time stood still.

And it felt good.