Falling off the Meal Plan

So how does the meals maven fall off her meal plan?

Today was that day for me. I had a full day of errands and tasks, baking and studying, a great and tasty dinner planned. Then the words "Breaking News" flashed across the television screen while I was finishing my coffee and that stopped me flat. 2 horrifying instances just a few days apart in which Canadian soldiers were targeted and murdered.

The first soldier, Warrant Officer Patrice Vincent, was deliberately targeted and hit by a car driven by someone reported to be "radicalized". The second, an unarmed Honour Guard at Canada's War Memorial in Ottawa, was shot at point-blank range before the shooter took off to do more damage in our House of Commons. Corporal Nathan Cirillo died later in hospital; the shooter was killed during a gun-fight with law enforcement in the Parliament building.

I am so saddened by this. I'm not offering any opinions on motivations, religious convictions, or anything else on these murders. I'm sure the media will be full of passionate diatribes in days to come, and there will be plenty of people more educated in these manners than I am that can offer some sort of explanation. What I can see, what I can say with certainty, is that violence begets violence, that it spreads like a cancer and metastasizes around the world, no matter what part of the world we live in.

For today only, I drove through McDonalds to get dinner for the boys in my life. Today I am letting go of the kitchen duties and letting myself just mourn for the loss of our soldiers, our country's shattered illusion of safety, the evil found in everyone's hearts, and how much sorrow we will all have to face in years to come. 

I know this has nothing to do with meal planning, but it's where I'm at today, and know that when you're at that point, it's ok for you to fall off the meal plan too. It happens.

Oh Canada, we stand on guard for thee.