I love being in the kitchen. Whether it's cooking a hot meal, baking something sweet, or chopping fresh veggies, it's a place that provides a unique comfort that I can't find anywhere else. I can remember as a small child, watching my mother cook meals from scratch seven nights a week. Homemade cookies, roast chicken, and pasta with fresh tomato sauce were weekly indulgences in my home. It seemed that every event, big or small, was encompassed by food...in a REALLY good way.I always had a keen interest in watching my mother cook, and paid close attention to the techniques that she used. As soon as I was old enough, I helped in the kitchen. I have fond memories of hulling strawberries for summer jam, peeling peaches for pies, mashing potatoes and thickening gravy for dinner. And it never felt like a chore. It didn't fall into the same category as cleaning my room or sweeping the floors did. Helping to prepare meals was exciting for me and I loved every second of it!
Throughout high school, I went back and forth in deciding what I was going to be. Of all the options presented to me, a career in food was not one of them. And I spent too much time looking for connection between subjects and careers, rather than considering things that I actually loved.Today, I don't have a job working with food. But I cook for my family as often as I can and I love doing it. My husband is an excellent cook as well, and the best meals to leave my kitchen are the ones that we work on together. My boys are growing up in a food-happy home, as I did.
Do I ever look back at the past and wonder where my life would be if I had followed a career path to food? Of course I do! But I try to live my life without regret. Culinary school is still a dream, and I know that it will probably always be a dream. For now, in this moment, I'll enjoy my very own culinary school at home where I can make what I want and share my passion for food with the people that I love.
And as long as it's my culinary school, I will continue to pretend that I have my own cooking show as I work away in the kitchen!
2 comments:
I LOVE this post. I think that far too many of us did the same thing - when our guidance counselor asked what we wanted to do, we responded with what we thought they wanted to hear. Keep nurturing your talents and consider part time classes when the boys are bigger - before I met Mike, while nursing a broken heart, I signed up for pastry arts classes at George Brown so I'd have something to do on Saturday mornings other than pine away for him. Turned out to the best thing I ever did for myself... even though none of my boys have a sweet tooth!
Pastry art classes...that would be heaven for me! It's great that you used a negative experience as an opportunity to learn something new :) I have considered taking part time classes once the boys are both in school, I just have to keep reminding myself that I can do it!
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