Once upon a time, about 40 years ago, my mother in law Dale wanted to surprise her husband George so she made him a meatloaf; one of his favorite meals. Although not a huge meatloaf fan herself, she wanted to do something nice for her sweetie. Dale lovingly went to the store, purchased the ingredients, shaped the loaf, put it in the oven to bake, set the dinner table with candles and called George to remind him to come home from work in time for dinner.
Sadly, George got caught up in a work project for several hours and by the time he came home, the candles had burned down to stubs and the meatloaf was cold. George apologized, but it was too late. Dale vowed she would never make meatloaf again and for 40 years the meatloaf pan remained empty. George patiently waited, and waited (and occasionally ordered it out at restaurants), but the family is known for a stubborn streak and so the Hocking house remained meatloaf free.
Until one day, a fairy godmother named Paula Deen posted a new meatloaf recipe to her website. It got rave reviews and Dale decided to try it: http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/paula-deen/old-fashioned-meat-loaf-aka-basic-meatloaf-recipe/index.html
For longer than I have been alive, my father-in-law George has been waiting for Dale to make him another meatloaf. It took 40 years for this blurry photo to happen. 40 years of waiting. 40 years of patience. Luckily, Kevin and I could be there for this momentous event and I was able to capture the meatloaf joy with my handy iphone camera. George eagerly ate seconds, then thirds. Hip hip hooray! Everyone lived happily ever after. The end.
Lessons Learned:
–Good things come to those who wait (40 years)
–I need to carry my canon camera with me at all times. I love my iphone, but the camera just doesn’t cut it for food photos.
–40 year old meatloaf tastes awesome (also, Paula Deen’s recipe is great).
–If you are going to dinner at Dale’s house, do not be late.
–Just in case she’s reading this — I love you Dale! Happy Mother’s Day!
