Backstory: By sheer luck of inheritance, I have two full sets of gorgeous silverware. One set gets brought out for the occasional special occasion. The other set has…ahem…never been used. I’m really not “saving” these precious items, I simply don’t remember to use them.

Until now. Break out the good stuff, people! Let’s use and enjoy what we have!

What Happened: Two meals, each featuring one of the sets of silverware.

So, yes, this did require gentler hand-washing of items (versus stuffing everything into the dishwasher), but I think the trade-off was worth it. (See The Ah-Hahs.)

The Ah-Hahs: About a month into our COVID-19 sheltering-in-place, Thor and I started noticing our food didn’t taste as good as usual. We were able to get good ingredients (so grateful) ,and I wasn’t preparing things differently, but the stress we were under messed with our senses. I also noticed that we were eating a lot faster than usual, eating to fuel but not necessarily enjoying the experience.

That changed when we brought the good stuff to the table. The good silverware inspired the good plates, the nice glasses inspired the nice linens. We sat down to eat instead of standing at the kitchen counter. We didn’t shovel in the food, we took smaller bites. We took our time.

How incredibly fortunate we are to be able to do this.