MUSTARD TASTING

From Zurich I boarded a train to Dijon, France – home to Dijon mustard. It was a great ride with fantastic views of the mountains. I may have mentioned that traveling through Europe is easy, inexpensive and fast.

There are hundreds of types of mustards – who knew?!  Even a “mustard bar” where they have mustard on tap and will pour you the mustard of your choice.  I attended a mustard tasting class on a whim. Unfortunately, we did not get a pretzel to use to taste the mustard, just a small wooden spatula.

The name ‘mustard’ derives from the Latin word ‘mustum’, meaning ‘sour’. Makes sense. Mustard seeds come in white to black and shades in between. Dijon mustard seeds are black, which distinguishes them from the regular white mustard seed we are accustom to in the USA. Mustard is also blended with different vinegars to give it a different taste. Dijon produces 90 percent of the seeds for Dijon mustard.  I had two delicious dinners one with fish and one with duck served with creamy mustard sauces.

The mustard seed is also used for medicinal purposes everything from diabetes to psoriasis. Even weight loss- but you have to eat an entire tablespoon of mustard seeds a day to boost metabolism. Makes sense, with that much mustard seeds in my stomach I would be too nauseas to eat anything else.  Web MD listed more medicinal benefits.

And then there is the bible story of the mustard seed. The mustard seed is one of the smallest seeds in the world and when planted under the right conditions will grow into one of the largest bushes. The bible tells us that even a small amount of faith, the size of a mustard seed, can grow into great happenings.

I visited two art museums in Dijon and met one of the artists that had painted a copy of the Pieta. The painting of the Virgin Mary’s face was spellbinding. In the corner of the painting was a small dark, sad looking character wrapped in chains.  We talked about it and the artist told me that the Virgin, holding the body of Christ was painted to look both sad and hopeful. The character in chains off to the side represents how we are not free if we are chained to societies ideas of what makes us happy. And eventually lose hope for our life.

I happen to carry a copy of Anthony De Mellos small pocket book called “The Way to Love” with me at all times and try to read a few pages or sentences each morning to meditate on throughout the day. Fr. De Mello was a catholic priest from India who I have followed for many years. 

I told the artist that my reading with De Mello that very morning said exactly almost word for word what he told me about the painting. I quote ”There is not a single moment in your life when you do not have everything that you need to be happy. If you are unhappy, it is because you focus on what society tells you that you don’t have – more money, fame, “stuff” or more people around you.”   And I thought that was more than just a coincidence.

Mustard on Tap

So much mustard!

Mustard farm in Dijon

I inadvertantly cut off the sad character in chains in the left corner – you can see it peaking out.

Fish dinner with Dijon sauce