Smorgasbord #21
Gala, The Bear, Chongo
Hello friends, I’m writing this after five out of six members of the Cantú Clan got a 24-hour stomach bug. Don’t worry; we took turns being sick. I was the last one to get it; on the bright side, I lost 7 lbs. Nothing says penance like being on your knees while cleaning vomit and feces, ah Lent. I would like to publicly recognize my personal nurse
for taking excellent care of me while I was out of service.I would also like to recognize
for becoming Peregrino’s first paid subscriber. Your support is greatly appreciated!We’re three weeks away from Good Friday, and if I’m honest with you, this Lent has felt longer than that. It has been a strangely joyful Lent, all things considered. If you’re like me and have failed multiple times on your Lenten disciplines, let’s begin again today and do our best for the next three weeks. Are you with me?
Primus
Diana and I have been volunteering at our parish to help couples prepare for the sacrament of Holy Matrimony. We review the couple’s pre-marriage inventory, and it’s been a privilege to walk with them as they prepare to start their new lives together.
Because of this, we were invited to the Golden Jubilee Celebration of the Office of Natural Family Planning in the Diocese of Phoenix. We’ve been part of the diocese for over a decade, so listening to how NFP started here was mind-blowing. Laypeople paved the way fifty years ago, and we are grateful for their work.
In addition, we talked to Bishop Emeritus Thomas Olmsted, whom we love and admire. His apostolic exhortation Into the Breach has helped me be the man I am today. Then Complete My Joy, directed to husbands, wives, mothers, and fathers, has touched our lives. If you want to peruse more of his writing, click here.
Natural Family Planning is the general title for the scientific, natural, and moral methods of family planning that can help married couples either achieve or postpone pregnancy.
From personal experience, this has strengthened our marriage by making us more human and living heroic lives. It requires abstinence, which is nothing but a school of love, an opportunity to take a deep spiritual dive and find other ways to love your spouse.
Secundus
Right before Lent began, I binge-watched the two seasons of FX’s The Bear. This show follows Carmen "Carmy" Berzatto, who inherits a sandwich shop in Chicago called “The Beef” from his brother, who committed suicide. He could sell the building and walk away with some money, but instead, he wants to turn the shop into a professional kitchen. Carmy used to be a renowned chef in Sweden, and they alluded to him working in Noma. The restaurant is in financial trouble, and the crew he has to work with doesn’t like change. You could say that this is a recipe for disaster, but they manage to pull it off. Season two revolves around them turning “The Beef” into a fine dining establishment, and I won’t say more to not spoil the show to those who may want to watch it.
This may sound masochistic, but I enjoyed how uncomfortable every episode made me feel. The writers, actors, directors, and editors create tension like it’s nothing. The pilot itself has a very intense scene where a lot is happening, yet you’re able to follow what’s going on and want to figure out how the hell things are going to resolve, and the episode ends on a cliffhanger. It was stressful. “Fishes,” a season two episode being the most stress-inducing one, in my opinion, has Jamie Lee Curtis, Bob Odenkirk, Jon Bernthal, and oddly enough, John Mulaney in a family dinner setting that puts any dysfunctional family to shame.
The themes of family, trauma, and the sense of urgency captivated me. The character arcs feel credible, and the writers do a masterful job of redeeming some rather unlikable characters, leaving you with a sense of hope. Then, season two leaves several things unresolved: things break, people shine, and chances are missed. I can’t wait for season three to come out in June.
Tertius
I was watching Pints with Aquinas, and Matt Fradd referenced The Robber Bridegroom by The Brothers Grimm, which caught my attention. I liked the pace of this short tale; everything we’re told is to move the story forward with no fluff.
I enjoyed
Manly Saints’ piece about Blessed Bartolomé Olmedo, Hernan Cortés’ chaplain, offers a different perspective from what is taught in Mexican schools, like glossing over human sacrifice. If you like the intersection between history and Church history, read this.I’m sorry about the spam this past week; the muse hit hard. In case you missed it, I published several cocktail recipes based on Macabre Monday’s Dinner Party. I also posted a Lenten piece on the process the elect will undergo before being received into the Church on Easter. Lastly, I wrote a piece on self-sabotage.
Digestif
I didn’t know how to translate the word chongo into English—now I know it’s bun, as in hair bun—but in my quest to find a neutral definition, I consulted the Real Academia Española and found out that chongo can mean several very different things, depending on which Spanish speaking country you are.
For example, in Peru, chongo means a scandal; it can also mean a brothel. In the Dominican Republic, chongo is used to describe a weak horse. In Puerto Rico, chongo is a low-quality bunch of bananas. Additionally, in Mexico, the phrase agarrarse del chongo means to fight.
Therefore, you could build a sentence like:
Que chongo! Se agarraron del chongo en el chongo enfrente del chongo que come chongo.
What a scandal! They fought in the brothel in front of the weak horse that eats low-quality bunches of bananas.
This probably won’t be useful unless you’re in those countries and situations. Still, I found it hilarious and wanted to share it with you.
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Sobremesa
Do you enjoy dressing up for fancy parties?
Have you watched The Bear?
Do you have a favorite fairytale by the Brothers Grimms?
Great reading. I hope you have fun finding the 7 lbs you lost (I always enjoy the “rebuilding” phase).