Can-tankerous

I'm not one to buy too much canned food. I try to keep things fresh and simple for meals. I look at the conveyor belt in the supermarket as a canvas of sorts for the things I have chosen: Grains, meats, vegetable, fruit, dairy - milk, bread, cheese, eggs. If I can keep the junk out save for the occasional box of cookies (which I usually don't buy because I bake), I am happy with my classic combination of groceries on that belt. I imagine the checker giving me an internal thumb's up as my choices fit for a children's story book illustration roll past and under the scanner.

Canned foods are, however, a necessity. They are geat to have on hand in a pinch. Campbell's Chicken Noodle soup is wonderful to heat up and put in thermoses when I have no idea of what to stick in the girls' lunch boxes. They love it. I need to have my Pet Milk on hand always, because what if I want a cup of coffee (decaf please)? Only Pet Milk as a creamer will do. It reminds me of my grandparents. When Grandma would run out of regular milk, she would make my hot chocolate with Pet, and though it didn't taste quite the same, I loved the improvisation. It's the flavor of my childhood. I am lost without cans of Pet Milk in my cupboard.

Libby's Pure Pumpkin Puree is another must have. Pumpkin pie, pumpkin bread, pumpkin cookies, pumpkin empanadas - every home needs it. Stewed tomatoes for spanish rice, maybe throw in some canned peas, Ortega Chili for casseroles, Las Palmas enchilada sauce for the times (mostly always) when I don't want to use real New Mexico chili powder for the real thing. Besides, the kids are too small for the spiciness of the real thing, so the cheat of Las Palmas is acceptable in my (maybe not my mom's) book.

See, my canned choices are important. I don't have a ton of room in my pantry, so I have to be sure that what is in there is going to be used. No canned bread, no canned german potato salad, no lentils, no boston baked beans (but I love Trader Joe's Cuban Black Beans), no turkey chili, and definitely no Menudito or canned tamales are to be found in this house. So when the subject of the school canned food drive came up this week, I kept quiet.

In spite of my best canned food scrooge efforts, the girls are motivated philanthropists, and it was only a matter of time before Emme started scouring my meager stores. She came to me on Monday and sweetly asked for a can. How could I refuse? Sure. I gave her a can of Swanson's chicken broth. She stuck it in her backpack. I put my finger to my lips while pointing to Celeste who hadn't caught the charity bug yet.

Tuesday, Emme asked for another can. "Can I have two cans?" she asked, again sweetly. "I get little check marks next to my name for each can I bring in, and Om already has 20." Hmmm...I grudgingly look in my cupboard and hand her a can of Wolfgang Puck's cream of mushroom (great for casseroles) and a forgotten can of Dynasty Water Chestnuts. "Thanks Mom!" She sticks them in her backpack and is off. Wednesday: 2 more cans and Celeste finally catches the drift. "Hey Mom!" She frowns. "I need to take in cans too!" I offer her a can of diced tomatoes. It's starting to hurt. "But Emme is taking two!" Okay. One of my Pet Milks go into her backpack. No worries. Two more cans of Pet left for me.

Thursday comes and Emme goes in for the big guns. She convinces her dad to help her store 8 cans - Eight! - of my precious, well thought out supply into her backpack. I turn my head and walk away, thinking of the shopping I am going to have to do to replace this stuff. Or worse, what if I run out of salsa and need that can of El Pato, and it's not there anymore? Luckily, Celeste seemed uninterested. Until this morning. "Mom? Today is the last day of the week, and I would like to take in some more cans for the poor. May I have a few more?" I tried to mask a pained look, but she caught it. Her sensitive face fell and she said, "It's okay. I won't take anymore if you really need it." I bent down to her, ashamed that I am so selfish with my bounty. "No sweetie, the poor need it more than I do."

I hand her my pumpkin puree, my last two Pet Milks, some sweetened condensed milks (great for magic cookie bars), and my Trader Joe's Cuban Style Black Beans. I watch her stick them all into her backpack and stagger toward the Minnie Van with her similarly burdened little sister.

I take a look into my clutter free cupboards, and am delighted to be a part of the giving.