Monday, January 21, 2008

Coca-Cola

For Christmas a friend brought me a bottle of Coca-Cola, my favorite drink and logo, that was made in Mexico - made with real sugar, not high fructose corn syrup. Then I discovered that our local Mexican tienda has them. Now, I'm splurging and drinking about 3 per week.

I am so excited. The first few sips were soooo sweet, but then my taste memory kicked in and, "Oh, sweet bliss" - just like the original Coke recipe that I remember from many years ago.

It's like finding the original recipe for my spirituality. Sometimes, I have to go back to the basics, "Jesus loves me this I know". My Mom sang lots of good songs while we were growing up, and most of them were about the ubiquitous presence of God - with us, beside us, pulling for us, being our friend. When I move far from God, I sing some of those songs, and I feel myself being pulled in.

"Let the lower lights be burning, send a gleam across the wave. Some poor fainting, struggling sinner, you may rescue, you may save." And, I can see the lower light as well as the stars - and I have hope and faith and enthusiasm once again. It's my original recipe.

But, back to Coke. Then Friday, I stopped at Trash and Treasures and found a large basket full of Coke "stuff"...bought it, brought it home, unpacked it. Inside was a Coke can phone that works really well, four salad plates with the Coke logo in the middle, a couple of mugs with similar logo, two tiny little lunch boxes, a straw holder, a tin shaped like a Coke truck (the top of the truck cab also comes off), a huge Coke stein. What fun, what fun! Everything has found a home including that wonderful basket that held all of these goodies.

Why do we like such things as Coke logos? It's the real thing. That summarizes my feelings when I see the Coke logo, a created response. Even the right color red will trigger that feeling that the moment, the place, the time, is the real thing - the essence of my life. The wave is motion, and I've always been in motion. So, the Coke logo is, in some ways, a symbol of my life - vital color, flowing motion, excitement, tastes good, savory, peps me up.

And, now that I've had my high fructose, 8 ounce bottle of Coke and my spiritual reflection for the day, I think I'll get a shower and head off for a knitting class on making cable stitch.

May you find your logo!

1 comment:

Janis Bland said...

Is the stuff you get at the tienda akin to that wonderful flavor that an old-time soda fountain had? If so, I must find some! (I drink Diet Coke, but I salivate for that caramely sweetness of a true soda fountain.)