Ho, everyone who thirsts,
    come to the waters;
and you that have no money,
   come, buy and eat!
Come, buy wine and milk
   without money and without price. (Isaiah 55:1)

Theory: A guaranteed universal basic income supports persons to contribute through paid or unpaid work. As people settle into their basic needs being met, they will live out their God-given generative and creative longings. We are all designed to want to contribute to our communities, and will do so with the peace of knowing where our next meal is coming from.

Theory: All-you-can-eat, 24-hour room service and multiple free restaurants on an all-inclusive vacation will reduce my appetite. At least after a couple days of glutinous joy, when I settle into knowing that this food is always available, I won’t want to eat so much of it.

I have to explain why I’m experiencing an all-inclusive resort with 24-hour unlimited food. This is an embarrassing vacation to admit to Anabaptists, so keep in mind that my sister and I did not pay for this all-inclusive, but were given gift certificates to this hotel chain after a big mistake on their part.

My sister and I were overwhelmed by maximizing our good fortune and felt compelled to try as many menu and buffet items as possible — without wasting food or stuffing ourselves to discomfort! The portions were usually modest, and we only occasionally ate too much at the buffet when we miscalculated how many things we wanted to try.

Raised to finish everything on our plates before we could eat the next meal, my sister and I rarely waste food. We occasionally fed leftovers to stray cats or snuck them back to our rooms when we had simply had too much.

My sister often remarked, “I haven’t been hungry in days,” with some regret, or possibly nostalgia. Not a morning eater, my habit is to wait until my stomach growls before having breakfast. At this all-inclusive resort, my stomach did growl most days, but even then I couldn’t say I felt hungry.

My breakfast got earlier and earlier when I finally broke my rules about gluten and sugar and started picking up the (free, of course) chocolate and almond croissants with my morning (free) coffee.

We were hungry for novelty, and we also had a strong appetite to savor the food items and venues that had become our favorites. 

We worried that by the time we returned to normal life we wouldn’t know how to cook for ourselves anymore, or remember we had to wash our dishes. But by the time we boarded the plane, we were relieved not to have so many choices to make about what and when and how often to eat.

Sure, we still have to make those choices at home, but without the free aspect, we don’t have any pressure to maximize the deal. We had to pay for our plane tickets, taxis and various incidentals, so the more food we ate, the better deal we were getting on this trip, right?

That’s the inevitable belt-loosening logic of a buffet. That could be the inevitable loafing logic of collecting universal basic income while lounging on the couch with cheap snacks and entertainment.

My sister and I, simple Anabaptists, surprised ourselves by how much we enjoyed staying at an all-inclusive resort. Sweeter than the croissants was the feeling of being taken such good care of, how sincerely the staff wanted us to have a good time. But we were ready to contribute, and we believe that it’s our divinely-created human nature to contribute. 

So we have a proposal: a cooperative all-inclusive resort. Anyone who wants to become a member will work at the resort for the same number of weeks/year that they want to stay at the resort. With all-volunteer staff (in our fantasy, we’ll get enough participants to fill out the staff with co-op members), the cost could be pretty low! Especially with a vegetarian menu and without alcohol (or at least without unlimited alcohol). Would you like to join our cooperative?

One of my favorite breakfasts at the resort (and in general) is Huevos Rancheros.

Sauce:

• 4 Roma tomatoes, or 2 large tomatoes
• 1/2 medium white onion
• 1 Serrano pepper
• 2 cloves garlic
• salt and pepper
• cooking oil of your choice

To assemble:

• 4 (6-inch) corn tortillas
• cooking oil of your choice
• 4 large eggs
• ½-1 cup refried beans (canned or homemade)
• queso fresco or cotija cheese (optional)
• cilantro (optional)

1. Pulse sauce ingredients in a blender or food processor, then sauté with a little oil for about five minutes, until fragrant and slightly darker. Remove from heat.
2. Lightly fry each tortilla on both sides. This really makes a difference, otherwise they will be soggy once assembled. Fry or scramble eggs as you prefer.
3. Heat the beans, crumble the cheese, rinse the cilantro.
4. Assemble: tortilla, beans, egg, cheese, sauce, cilantro. Eat immediately.