Today’s find: Sushi

I took a trip to Tokyo the other day, and came away unimpressed. 

“Tokyo Sushi,” that is: a charming little restaurant that serves up a full array of sushi: nigiri, sashimi, sushi rolls and more. I went mostly out of curiosity. Certain people, beloved people in my circle, tend to rave about sushi. I know more than a few who call sushi their favorite cuisine.

But I guess I’m from the “I don’t really get it” school. Raw fish? What’s there to love, to rave about? That said, I’d also have to admit that I’d never been to a sushi-forward establishment. I’d tasted a California Roll here or there, but never at a place with “Sushi” in its name.

Hence the trip to Tokyo, a chance for Gerri and me to help our eldest son celebrate his recent birthday. He’d heard me disparage the whole concept of sushi in the past, and wanted to make sure I didn’t dismiss the cuisine without first having tasted “real sushi.”

Adult children are like that, aren’t they? Forever challenging the Old Man’s worldview, his cherished assumptions. Forever prodding the Greybeard to remain in some part “evergreen.”

At my son’s suggestion, I dove into the deep end at Tokyo: a nigiri combo plate, with a shrimp tempura roll on the side. And I’ll say this: it was a beautiful thing to see the nigiri arrive – four fresh fish food morsels arranged artfully alongside the shrimp roll on a narrow plate.

But then the fun began, wrestling with chopsticks to dip each morsel into soy sauce…before navigating it toward my mouth.

And that’s what I tasted for the most part: soy sauce. All four morsels landed on my palate with the exact same salty profile. Not a terribly impressive experience overall.

Only later did I learn that I’d committed some sushi faux-pas(s). For starters, chopsticks are not necessary…most sushi eaters pick-and-dip with their fingers, like they’re eating chicken wings. (Knowing that certainly would have saved me a LOT of time and effort!) And the proper way to dip is to flip the morsel, so that the fish goes in the sauce while the rice remains untouched. Apparently, I’d doused all the subtle and elegant flavors in the rice, rendering them inaccessible to my taste buds.

Alas. I guess now I have to go back to Tokyo, because I still haven’t had a “real sushi” experience. If only I’d had somebody like Joshua, son of Nun, to guide my actions. In today’s first reading, he complains about a couple of guys who aren’t following the rules. “Moses, my lord, stop them!” he tells the Big Guy.

But Moses, I notice, is capable of seeing a bigger picture. He detects the Spirit of God at work in unexpected places, in unexpected people. And in the process, he manages to expand Joshua’s worldview. It’s the kind of insight that can (as the Psalmist notes) “give joy to heart” – perhaps like a plate of properly-consumed sushi.

Let us pause now…to recall that we are in the presence of the Holy & Merciful One.

IHS