Many people in my wonderful circle of friends and family have opened a package at  Christmas from me that is a beautiful bowl. That looks something like this. 

Part of my holiday tradition every year is to go flying into Olive & Elle in downtown Kelowna and not only wish the lovely team a happy holidays but also pick out my “Everything Bowls” for the year. 

Susan you exclaim (It’s Christmas so ‘exclaim’ seems appropriate) it’s just a bowl, a pretty bowl, but just a bowl. 

It is so much more. 

This bowl can be a centre piece on the sideboard, a bowl full of mashed potatoes for family dinner, a bowl at the front door for keys, wallets and cellphones, a bowl with your favourite soup, or  bowl that you put your fast food burger into just to make dinner a touch fancier. It could even be a fancy hat.. but please be careful if you go that route.  A bowl that makes you smile because you know how excited (even if it is ridiculous) I was to give it to you. 

It’s your everything bowl because to me at some point, even just for a moment,  you were my everything. 

Just writing this brings tears to my eyes because I know pieces of my heart are scattered across the country in kitchen cupboards and displayed on tables. Bowls that held food while you watched a movie or when you had a cold and consumed your favourite soup. Bowls that stood silently by while you screamed your frustrations and danced out your joy. Some of those bowls I will never see again, because that’s the way friendship goes sometimes, but that doesn’t take away any of the love and joy that was involved when I selected that bowl for you and everyone that has received that gift over the years. 

This year my “Everything Bowls” are on hold because… #2020 and honestly my everything was needed to get through the rollercoaster that this year delivered. My everything was turned inward or at least kept to a tight circle to make sure that next year I would be joyfully sharing Everything Bowls with family and friends once again.

But, if you going flying into Olive & Elle looking for a special gift, make sure to have a mask on and proceed to ask Linda about Susan’s Everything Bowl.

She will know exactly what you need.