Welcome to Day 7 of 31 Extraordinary Days to Be…  Or…simply: Be…
Together, we will learn to Be… to live fully and beautifully in our “skin”
and in our homes and beyond.  If you missed The Introduction or you’d like
to follow the entire series, you can find each post listed here.

When you read the words Be Hospitable do you cringe?

Are you thinking….

“I already have too many things to do, I can hardly keep my house together let alone have decent meals for the family, and I’m running constantly, when do I have time to be hospitable?”

In this series about 31 Extraordinary Days to Be… we are looking at each day’s topic from the perspective of being not doing.

I can hear you now.  “Um.  Yeah.  How is that possible?  This all looks like one more thing to do, to me.”

Will you stick with me for just a bit longer?  I think hospitality is a mindset, an attitude, an outlook on humanity.

So many times we fall into the trap of thinking that to be hospitable is to clean the house, get out the good dishes, and cook foods we don’t usually eat, so that people we don’t know all that well can come to our house.  Nope. Nope. Nope.  That is the farthest thing from hospitality.  That is entertaining….and something we will address in a later post.

Hospitality is to look out into our world and see people who need to be included, people who need company, people who need a place to go, people who need encouragement, and offer that very thing.

Are you in a group of any kind?  It could be a mom’s group, a business/networking group, a class, (fill in the blank)  ________ group.  When I was in a morning networking group for business there were two people who were assigned the task of greeting visitors or potential new members.  There were official tasks that needed to be covered in that role between the greeter and the guest.  But, beyond that, I watched as one woman would focus entirely on the guest, asking questions about their business, their personal life, and introducing them to the members as if she were introducing a good friend.  She never thought about herself.  Other greeters might be more concerned about self promotion of their own business interests.  But not this woman. Can you imagine how valued this guest felt, how their fears of attending a meeting as a stranger melted away, how they would eagerly take on that role and do it well once he or she was appointed to that position as a member?

When we are being hospitable, when we wear the attitude of hospitality, we are others focused.
We take our eyes off ourselves and place another individual’s need(s) first.   I will be the first to tell you that this is not always easy.  But, remember, this isn’t about the doing…it’s about the being.  And though it may not seem natural to some, keep in mind that as it is practiced, it becomes easier and more natural.  And before you know it, you are being hospitable not doing hospitality.

Hospitality may be your everyday gift.  Or it may reside in the bottom drawer that is usually stuck closed.   It doesn’t matter where you are on the hospitality spectrum.  Nope.  What matters is your attitude towards hospitality.   Are you willing to be hospitable?  Are you willing to let go of some of the things on that never-ending ‘to-do’ list to be for others?

Can I tell you a secret?

There’s freedom in being.

Being…doing…big difference.  The doing comes out of responsibility, guilt, or the need for approval, usually.  Being is simply being who we were created to be.

Day 7 Challenge:   What big hurdle gets in your way or trips-you-up from being hospitable? What group(s) are you involved in where you can give yourself the opportunity to be hospitable?  What would it take to adopt the attitude needed to be hospitable?

As you’ve been reading this post, your mouth may have started to water looking at this delicious dessert.  My friend made this delectable delight as a hospitable gesture.   If you want to be hospitable and encourage someone with some sweet goodness from your kitchen, you’ll enjoy making and blessing someone with this cake.  Here’s the recipe:

Coconut Pecan Frosted Fruitcake

 

Cake

    Ingredients

• 2 Cups Flour
• 1 tsp. Soda
• 1 tsp. Salt
• 2 Eggs
• 1 1/2 Cups Sugar
• 1 Can (approx. 15 ounces) Fruit Cocktail (including juice)

    Instructions

• Preheat oven to 325 degrees
• Butter and flour a 9×13 Baking Dish
• Into a large mixing bowl add eggs, sugar, and fruit cocktail juice and beat until combined
• Add dry ingredients and beat on low until mixture is smooth
• Fold in the fruit
• Pour mixture into a 9×13 Baking Dish
• Bake at 325 degrees for 25 minutes or so

Topping

    Ingredients

• 1 Cup Sugar
• 1 Stick of Butter
• 1 12 oz. Can of Evaporated Milk
• 1 Cup Chopped Pecans
• 1 Cup Shredded Coconut
• 1 tsp. Vanilla

  Instructions

• Melt butter on medium low heat until melted
• Stir in sugar
• Add Evaporated Milk
• Boil for 10 minutes over medium low heat
• Stir in Vanilla, Pecans, and Coconut
• Pour over hot cake while frosting is hot

Let cool and serve.  Wait for the compliments.

Thank you for stopping by today.
I appreciate you and your sweet comments make my day.

Be Hospitable…

Diane

Please consider visiting each day during this #31Day series.

All the posts in the series will be added to this page each day of October.!
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What a wonderful adventure this will be as we journey together to Be…