Previous Challenge Entry (Level 3 - Advanced)
Topic: TASTE (07/01/21)
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TITLE: The Last Cake | Previous Challenge Entry
By Laurie Bahlke
07/08/21 -
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ADD TO MY FAVORITES
Combining ingredients, dipping my finger into the frosting, creating and decorating with streaks of sugar, sneaking small candies and molded rose petals as I go indulge my baker’s senses. I estimate that over the years I have made nearly 500 hundred cakes. Not all of them hit the mark, and some of them may have even been called cake wrecks but they were always met with shrieks of delight, sweet thank you notes and even a few hugs here and there. I did not realize how much it meant to me to have time in the preparation as I said a prayer for each cake recipient; prayers for health, healing, strength, 365 days of joy, and prayers that were sometimes selfish as in, “please God, let them enjoy this cake”.
In 2020 when the COVID pandemic hit and when I experienced personal changes and loss, I considered that the fudge enveloped cake, made in February for a colleague named Barb, would be the last. I was surprised how sad this made me. Things had changed in life and as it always happens, I had changed too. The smell of cake baking would not fill my home for many months. Bowls of frosting and mixers heavy with taste spun around their metal shafts no longer routinely occupied my cupboards and sink. Recipe books stayed nestled on shelves next to food coloring gels, containers of sprinkles and vanilla extract. I did not sneak recipe pages from old magazines sitting in doctor’s offices for nearly a year.
In times of change and uncertainty, it is natural to look back on life before the change. There is comfort in these memories and even in favorite foods and desserts. Licking frosting from a spoon can result in memories of joy, feeling the texture of something warm, sweet and gooey on the lips can bring comfort, living out familiar routines can create a sense of security. Piping swirls and flowers in colors of pink, orange and yellow just might inspire and lift spirits. Being generous to another whose life we only catch glimpses of can help us to feel connected.
While change is always occurring, the Bible tells us clearly that “Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today and forever” (Hebrews 13:8 NIV). We are instructed to “taste and see that the Lord is good”, and to know that we are blessed if we take refuge in Him (Psalm 34:8 NIV).
The start of 2021 rolled around and by mid-March I was again baking; small cupcakes wrapped in individual sheets of cellophane and tied with ribbon. Only a dozen or so for those who were longing for the taste of something familiar. To my surprise, the tray was empty minutes after the cake and birthday announcement went out. I believe that it is not the cake that draws people, it is the message that they are valued and worth celebrating. It is a contagious uniting of people who are so often worn down by life and circumstances. It is the taste of something “good” that people long for.
For me, the last cake and the loss that I felt in parting with this piece of my life pushed me to reconsider after a time of reflection. Perhaps things would never go back to the way they used to be but the message at the heart of why I made those cakes would remain. I would still remind people that they are valued, I would still live out a life for Christ, share my talents, count my blessings, lean on God the Father, and let my life as a believer be the taste of God’s goodness that lingers in another’s heart. The Lord is indeed good, both in the last and in the beginning of something new.
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Thank you. Very inspiring and sweet 'Cake Ministry'.