Oxford Democrat. [volume] (Paris, Me.) 1833-1933, 1917-02-20
Foresight and tire Everlasting
Question.

Question.
"Whst shall I have for the next mealP'
tho everlasting question OF the house
wife. Eliminating the breakfast, which
10 the average American household hsi
| settled down into mechanical toutine,
ninety. nine ont OF hundred house.
wives ask themselves the Same annoying
question twice three hundred and sixty
| Eve times year. How many times we
follow 1t up with an, "Oh dear, II only
1 always didn't have to be thinking
about what We are going to eatr'
Yet, why always be thinking about III
Someone has said the difference between
man and the animal 10 In foresight, but,
please, where il the foresight in the
housewife who gives thought only few
hours, or sometimes an hour, before
hand to the all-important question OF
food for her family, or why malign the
animal that In many cases settles the
meal problem months ahead for at least
part Of the yearp
In the good old days Of plain thinking,
plain living and simple food our fore.
mothers were no less busy In the fall Of
the year than the busy bee, or the SPUR
rel In storing the house with food for the
winter. Had they not done 30 the fam
lily would have gone hungry. In these
days of the tin can, the bakery, the gro
Gerry, the meat market around the cor
ner, and the refrigerator trains, bringing
| fresh vegetables and fruits In all seasons,
the modern housewife is not compelled
to use foresight and 1t Ia not surprising
that she doesn't. True she does still
make preserves and msrmslades, but In
rapidly decreasing amounts except on
the farms and in the small towns, FOL
why 20 to all that bother when You car
buy such good preserves and jellies al
the storep
The whole trend of modern Industrial
life, on first thought, seems to be to take
away from the housewife all need for re-
sourcefulness, foresight and careful
thinking, to create condition In which
she can be the grasshopper instead Of
the ant with impunity, planning just
one meal ahead and to all inteBts and
purposes get away with 1t fairly we'll.
But In so doing is she fair to herself OF
to her familyP I know q housewife who
vigorously declares she is not and hal
proved 1t in the management OF her OWL
household.
BY planning and thinking ahead she
saves herself lot of worry, fuss and
hurry; she gives her family more appe'
tizing and nutritious meals, and she
saves several dollars each week on the
provision bill. This is her story:
"For year have made practice Of
planning the meals for my family q
week In advance. Choosing leisure
hour sit down with my notebook and
pencil, cook book and, perhaps, two OF
three recipes that have caught my eye In
the magazines or papers.
81 first read over the menus for the
last three or four weeks and make . lis'
of the dishes We have not bad for some
time. To this list add from the cook
book and my clippings few new dishes
that s'sound good" for every discerning
housewife has discovered the psyche
logical value of introducing novelty into
her meals. These new and new.old
dishes are first scattered over the differ
ent days and meals. Then comes the
"flling in" In doing this have care
first to make ;'balanced combinations, u
that is, those that have the right proper
tions of muscle building, heat and ener
gy foods, and, second, to combining
dishes that 60 we'll together for an ap'
petizing meal.
'In planning series of meals in thii
way you will be surprised to find GU,
how fascinated you become. 1t becomes
something like the game of puzzle pic
lures in which the player tries putting
first one part and then another part TO-
gether in the effort to get the pieces to
tit into complete whole. I not infre
Iqueptly have become so interested that
have planned several days beyond the
week.
IL have, ALSO found that I can set my
table more economically this way
Thought is put into the work and one
gives attention to market prices and the
su bstitution of inexpensive for expensive
foods, which often they would not give
If they planned the meals, one at time
and in hurry as SO often happens. The
meals as q rule will be more palatable
100, for greater variety has been put
into them, not in the individual mea
necessarily, but in the weeks meals as 6
| whole.
"Then. too, think of the satisfaction
and the amount of nerve energy you
have saved yourself In settling for 9
whole week in advance the ever vexine
Question, What shall ! have for the next
neal?'" Certainly the habit of fore
sight might profit many.