Brilliant

For whatever reason, I've been craving more purple in my life lately.  Purple cabbage is so delicious sauteed with rapini, garlic and mushrooms, and in this case, some brown rice. I sprinkled a little ume plum vinegar on top to finish it.

In the same way that scents can blast us back to a bygone era, I find color combinations sometimes recall a special chapter for me.  This purple and green combo calls to mind one of my favorite college courses, oh so many moons ago!  As an Art History major, there was much to love, but taking place within a Decorative Arts Museum steps away from campus, this particular class stands out in a liminal space and time.  Decorative Arts include useful and decorative objects with which we live, and which provide us a rich knowledge of the culture of certain periods in history.  In this class, part of our curriculum dealt with the Neoclassical Period.  During this time, this green and purple combination was very popular in objects pertaining to royalty:  textiles, bone china, gowns, etc. 

Ah, college! I'd love to do it all over again.  It's funny how our daily lives can feel so mundane until we look back with greater perspective to see how truly grand they've been! There's obviously a lesson there for incorporating self-reflection going forward.  I'm so grateful for the memory elicited by my delicious royal meal.