The Bagel Philosophy

Literally breaking bread can offer sustenance in many ways.

Sarah Mae hosted me, Angelica, and Zach for a “bagel-off” this past Saturday. All four of us picked up bagels from various iconic Austin shops - such as Rockstar and Wholy - with the goal of comparing them to one another over a couple hours. Could we settle a nearly 200-year-old question? Who serves the best bagel in Austin? The plan originated between Zach and Sarah Mae, and it came together through their deliberate coordination.

We arrived at Sarah Mae’s home with bittersweet moods; Zach and Angelica are moving to Massachusetts at the end of the month, and the bagel-off represented the fast-approaching end of this era. The laughs started instantly, as they always do with us, and we settled into Sarah Mae’s lovely & warm home.

We didn’t let too much time pass before placing the bagels into the toaster. Everything bagels with lox spread soon landed on four plates. In between bites, everyone explained their impression of the offering. Zach liked the crunchiness juxtaposed to the inherent softness of the original bagel. Angelica, Sarah Mae, and I enjoyed the sturdiness of the cream cheese. I believe all of us marveled at how content one can feel after consuming half of a bagel.

We continued through these courses - smaller plain bagels met plain spread, lightly toasted sesame bagels encountered chive spread, and contemporaneous notes flowed orally. As we ended the Rockstar course, Zach shared his perspective on the significance of bagels - especially as a native New Yorker. Sure, bagels serve the very important role of providing a vehicle for lox. Bagels are also designed to be eaten in community. Bagels certainly make appearances as people are sitting shiva and breaking the fast of Yom Kippur; more broadly, they offer sustenance and the ability to share stories across myriad days of countless lifetimes.

That wisdom offered a conduit to even more expansive reflections. We enjoyed dense, airy, small, big, sweet, and savory bagels as we discussed the elements of life that led us to these grand friendships. Zach meditated on the job he’d left the day prior in anticipation for the move, Sarah Mae told us about her time as a teenaged barista and the community-building she’s been engaged in for decades, and Angelica remembered her late grandfather and his beautiful impact on her life. We kept laughing as one or two of us would go to toast the bagels and return to serve those remaining at the table. This alternating practice of care reinforced the symbiotic nature of my friendships in the many chapters of my life.

As I sat with Zach, Sarah Mae, and Angelica in real-time, I thought back to a meal I shared with Kathryn, Dan, Pooja, Shea, Angela, Mitch, Maggie, Alex, and Dillon in May. In both settings, people smiled over their meals, provided life updates, and ultimately reinforced the collectivism that binds humanity. I am grateful for these moments; I look forward to more of them with Amber, Jody, Ry, Laith, JP, Sweet, Ashley, Tyler, Katie, John, Jessica, Sam, Jonathan, Jeremy, Andrew, Brian, Desireé, A.R., and many other lovely friends in my community.

Zach, Sarah Mae, Angelica and I admittedly didn’t answer the ancient question before us. Different bagels satiated various taste buds, and they were all good in their own way. We migrated to Sarah Mae’s back patio before we departed. Zach brought another nugget of sage knowledge to us; in another language, the speakers think of time differently. Instead of the past being behind you, it exists in front of you because you know what happened. The future is the unknown, and it can be viewed as the element of life that comes behind you - in place of how the past is often conceived.

I loved hearing about this reimagined relationship to time. Even with the uncertain nature of what’s to come, I feel good about the limitless possibilities of physical & spiritual nourishment that await.