A Year of Gratitude – March 31, 2024

Gratitude found me by way of a cinnamon roll this morning. Well, it was a batch of cinnamon rolls for Easter brunch. I was grateful for the time I spent making them and the moments we spent gathered around the table enjoying them.

I was busy this morning from the time I got up. First, there was Penny Lane looking at me with her big eyes hoping to be fed before I did anything else. She knows me well. I fed her and kept busy gathering together the tools and ingredients for my morning baking project which she ate breakfast and took her initial stroll through the house, making sure that everything was exactly where she left it last night when she decided to take a nap until bedtime.

Once she had taken her romp in the backyard and come back inside to choose which couch to take her morning nap on, it was time for me to head outside for my morning round of farm chores. It was bright and sunny, but the wind from the past few days hadn’t left us. I was happy to feel the warm sunshine and our hens seemed equally happy.

I came back inside the farmhouse and set about that kitchen baking project. I promised my family that I would make a batch of sourdough cinnamon rolls for brunch on Easter morning. A baking promise is a promise, so it was time to get to work so that they were ready for brunch.

First, I needed a cup of coffee. With a hot cup of coffee in hand, I was ready to get started. I’ve been working on this cinnamon roll recipe for a long time, changing a bit here or there each time and making notes about the results. My stack of notes and recipe versions has grown thicker with each batch. I smiled thinking back over the times I have made these cinnamon rolls. They have been part of our celebration of Christmas, birthdays, anniversaries, and other special moments over the years. They have a lot of comfort rolled right into them.

I took a deep breath and started making the dough. There’s something I love about making bread. It’s methodical and relaxing. I can get lost in the rhythm of it in the very best way. This morning, I was thankful for that. I needed to get lost in a project, to immerse myself in the doing.

The dough came together beautifully. It’s a stretchy, soft sort of dough. It rolls out easily and makes a pillowy soft bed for the butter, sugar, brown sugar, and cinnamon. I rolled it up, tidied up the cylinder, and cut it into rolls.

As I moved them to the parchment lined tray, the sun came out from behind a cloud and streamed in through the kitchen window. It hit the tray and the first row of rolls. It was beautiful, like something out of a painting.

As the oven warmed up, the trays sat on the stovetop and began to get puffy and ready for baking. I moved them into the oven and helped myself to a second cup of coffee. In minutes, the farmhouse started to fill with the aroma of baking bread, brown sugar, and cinnamon. It was delightful.

I had the vanilla bean glaze ready to add to the warm rolls when they came out of the oven. I waited a few minutes and added them to each roll. The warmth of the roll made it easy to spread the glaze. The look and smell of these rolls had me ready for brunch. I couldn’t wait until it was time to sit down and eat.

When we did sit down to eat, I sat back and looked around our table. There was something about the moment that begged for me to take it in, to capture this moment in a way that would stay with me forever. So, I did. Yes, I was eager to enjoy a warm cinnamon roll, but I was even more interested in being present in the moment, of being mindful of the place I was in with these people who I count myself lucky to be with.

And so, I sat back and looked around our table. My family was happily enjoying our brunch, chatting with each other. There was laughter and love all around me. How could I be anything but grateful to be right here? And the cinnamon rolls? Well, they were delicious right down to the last crumb.

This post is part of our A Year of Gratitude Series. You can find the introduction, inspiration, and entire year’s gratitude’s posts here.