I think I do my reflecting at the grocery store

Many people come back to USA from abroad and are overwhelmed by the grocery store. This is generally an initial reaction and I have found myself reflecting on this a few months later with a different reaction. A family friend was filling me in on some South African stores before I initially left. She said you can pretty much get anything in South Africa you can get here, but sometimes you will find it in a different type of store.

In my memory now I don’t focus on the early times we couldn’t find something, and that was for the most part trying to cook thanksgiving dinner in the opposite season. But we learned who to ask or where to find it.

Now being back I guess I struggle with it again. Part of this could be due to more regional stores, whereas most any city in South Africa had the same chain store or an open market place. I am surprised by the local farmers markets here. Partly due to the season, but there is much less produce then I would assume in Florida and many are just distributers for Farmers. (Maybe that is easier than the long row of stands down Church Street in Joburg where we would pick and choose from different sellers.)

Now in the land of plenty in my local grocery store last week I couldn’t find feta. I finally did find a little pre crumbled package. (It is a smaller store, but at any major store in a city in South Africa I could find it. Maybe not in a township) It’s not a fair direct comparison, but I spent another 20 minutes just walking around the grocery store, with too many options I just didn’t really want. I knew I wouldn't find ostrich, but I wanted pro-vita crackers and feta and the type of cranberry apple cinnamon tea I like. I am sure I can find substitutes, but I don’t remember missing things this way in South Africa. Trying to satisfy three different people, with different diets, all trying to be polite in the grocery store was often a stressful challenge first in South Africa. So it’s funny to write about it, but once you get past the shopping it’s about food that becomes meals and is shared.

I think it’s more that I had a system; I had everyday life figured out. And as I rebuild trying to do that again some days there are road blocks. I guess it’s just the transition to find the things I like again.

So some days I spend twenty extra minutes in the grocery store imagining what Lucille and I would get excited cooking. Or I call my dad asking what kind of mustard I like. (In fact I think I have talked to every immediate family member via text or on the phone in the store in the last two months).

And I check all the teas just in case one will be close enough.