It’s not what happens to you, but how you handle it. If Life gives you lemons, make lemonade. If the lemons are rotten, take out the seeds and plant them in order to grow new lemons.
Louise Hay
I remember when I was new to the United States, all those years ago.
Food and Kitchens
I was invited into the kitchens of quite a few hosts. The kitchens ranged from tiny, cramped spaces to giant, palatial spaces, in my immigrant eyes; in A New Place, a New Life and Change.
The palatial kitchens were equipped with as many as 2 ovens, fancy stoves, giant fridges, microwave ovens and many other amenities. The facilities would practically guarantee delicious meals and snacks.
Warmth from Food
Many of these same hosts, with kitchens large or small, fed me and my family with such generosity and warmth. These are happy memories. These are times I will never forget because it made me, a stranger, feel like I had friends.
However, it is interesting to note that many of the tastiest, most delectable meals I had, did not necessarily come from the largest kitchens. Indeed, the quality of the food had nothing to do with the luxuriousness of the kitchen. Nor had it to do with whether ingredients in the meal or the dishes themselves, were expensive.
If Food be the Stuff of Love
Indeed, the only commonality I have gleaned from all the best meals I had in those days, was one thing. It was this.
The heart of the cook.
The generous love each home cook put into their meal, translated into a warm and delicious experience for us, as guests. So, I carried this experience with me as I settled into life in the United States. It was the seed planted for what was to come.
Darkness and Despair
By the middle of 2013, I had reached a crisis point and was plunged into a very dark place where I felt lonely and rejected. As I tried to negotiate through my troubles, one of the factors that helped me emerge into the light and to feel like I had something to look forward to again, was the concept of giving other people happiness through food.
You see, I didn’t want to become bitter and mean because some people had projected their insecurities onto me. I wanted to make the proverbial lemonade out of the lemons that life had thrust onto me. I had to be better than those who had passed on their toxic negativity onto me.
A Venture of Great Hope
This is how Bakedbysue’s Life, at https://bakedbysueslife.etsy.com, was born in August of 2013. It was a way to channel all my energies to create food that people would love and experience a piece of joy with every bite. It so happens that cooking and baking is my superpower, so I chose food to pass on happiness to others. I began my venture with biscotti and expanded into cookies and brownies.
Food and Bonds
In an odd twist of fate, the top consumers of my food items have been recipients of gifts. Adult children sending love in the form of baked goods to their aging parents. Friends sending each other my baking to symbolize friendship, support and all-around warmth. I feel so privileged to be part of this chain of warmth and care between people. Every time I send out a batch of my baked goods I feel a glow of excitement and sheer joy. So I recommend you take my experience as a reminder of what you are capable of and that you too have your own special superpower.
I did promise you food for thought after all!
Conclusion
Please do come visit me and my 10 year old shop some time and take a look around. You may be inspired by the hope in my story.
This, therefore, is my warmest invitation to you to visit:
https://bakedbysueslife.etsy.com
A batch of my delicious brownies
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