I Am No Sarah Palin

I am sincerely grateful for my abundance of blessings, except one.

About four years ago, my husband came home with a grand announcement.  A friend had given him an entire chest of meat.  "Lots of elk and even some moose!"  he tells me.

"Oh joy." was my possibly sarcastic remark.

I truthfully tried to be the perfect wife.  I  attempted a flavorful moose stew.  My husband thought is was delicious.  I gulped down one bite and was done, never to return.

The elk was even worse.  The smell alone immediately overcame me.   I couldn't swallow.  I've heard the flavor of elk is greatly based on what the elk eats.  Because of my ladyish ways,  I won't tell you what I think ours ate.

We ended up giving away a good portion of the moose.  For some reason, no one would take that smelly elk.  Maybe I wasn't the best sales person.  I'm wondering if our generous donor had the same problem.

And so it remained, overtaking my freezer.  I have wanted to toss it numerous times, but felt guilty.  I know an animal died for that meat.   It has been a good food storage item.  If starving, I think I could choke it down.

Over the years, the elk has made an occasional sneaky dinner appearance, via my husband.   And, on a positive note, my husband did find his elk eating counterpart, my 3-year-old, Mase. I think this helped them bond.

Yesterday, however, there was a momentous development.  My husband cooked up some elk and-- couldn't eat it!  It smelled even stronger than usual.  Four years of freezer time will do that to meat I guess.

So, today, I say a final goodbye to the elk.  I'm sorry you were not appreciated, but you will not be missed.  

Rest in peace.

Grateful Mom Goal of the Day: We will be celebrating our elk-free lives with a tasty chicken.