Why Food & Why Now: How Hunger Drove Me to Food

When I decided to enrol into the Bakery and Pastry Arts Management program, some people I shared the news with were really confused. I have always been passionate about writing and enjoy helping people. I have a family, sure and we do have to eat… but still! 

I think in order for anyone to truly comprehend my decision is to first see the point of view I am coming from.

So, to begin, let me ask a question:

How many people do you know around you who are hungry?

Photo by chuttersnap on Unsplash

 While growing up, food wasn’t much of a thought to me, other than a mere means to aid my existence.  I didn’t have that same sense of wonder about the meals we ate when I compare the lived experience some of my friends shared. Perhaps that is why my perception from a young age did not consider whether the foods I consumed would be sustaining to my growth and development. As long as we had 3 square meals a day, I could check against the list of daily to-dos.  It’s almost embarrassing to admit that partly due to this lack of understanding, when food was not readily available, I would just ignore the grumblings of my stomach, either sleeping it off or staying busy doing else.

I can recall one winter when I could tell that my mum was visibly upset. I never understood our financial position at that particular time but I knew that there wasn’t much in the cupboards. A huge surprise box appeared filled with gifts and various non-perishables in time for Christmas shortly after.  Another instance during my tweens made me feel publicly shamed when I came home hungry after school and ate 5 cocktail patties, later being scolded by my mum for eating too much. This, at a time when I was diagnosed with hyper-thyroidism which caused increased metabolism, rapid weight loss and oh yeah, increased appetite to compensate.  Eating became a highlight that my illness was not under control and meant more visits to the doctors, more blood tests and more stress from my mum that her child was sick and could die. So, my internal thinking was deprivation. Although I wouldn’t starve myself extremely, I was never satisfied but made sure that nobody noticed. Add this mentality to a few years later.  I can recall queuing up behind others in line waiting to get their meal at the shelter we were in. Food again was a necessity and what we were fed didn’t matter. Just eat enough to get you by.

Photo by Steve Knutson on Unsplash

 Food can be used as a tool to exhibit stature and wealth. It can be assumed that the more you have the better off you are. In my late teens, several lifestyle changes lead to the unfortunate devaluing of females in my home. We were expected to cook, clean and maintain the house and made lavish dinners every weekend. Even with the amount of food cooked, we knew that money was tight and so we had to make sure that the men had their fill for that day and take food for ourselves being mindful that there would need to be enough to pack their lunches for work the next day. Hunger is a learned behaviour that I believed was acceptable and even now is a constant battle I struggle with as I often don’t realize how hungry I am until I hit a low.

It wasn’t until I met my husband who interestingly was a culinary chef who of course loved feeding people that I began to consistently eat well. Because of his company and the fact that we would often host small gatherings, I would actually eat. Even if I was busy running around and attending to others, he would always ensure a plate was fixed with everything on it that no one would touch. It was such a disparity from what I was used to, especially considering we didn’t have a ton of money but he always knew how to make the most incredible meals with limited ingredients.

What I have learned as a result is that food is given a hierarchy which varies in its position depending on the person. Food has always maintained high priority between my husband and I jointly to ensure that our children always have, though they’re not absolutely keen on our gradual transition away from the more processed kind. It is something that I strive to educate my children on in spite of my own struggle with it.

We oftentimes have a perception of what hunger looks like and you may be even more surprised to learn that a person you’ve always known deals with it. That the friend your child plays with, lives it. That the employee who comes in often working through their lunch, endures it. Simply put, these situations should not be the case.

I am in school not just to be educated as a baker or pastry chef. I am looking to be an advocate to those who slip through the cracks of not eating for the day. I am learning about the systems that our foods are involved in and exploring sustainability; options that are local supplied, easily accessible, support our communities and provide nutritional value to encourage optimal health. I am looking to highlight “slow foods” and explore the ARK of TASTE. I want to help our children to be active participants in their own well-being.

We interact with food every day, not just during meal time, but in our commutes, through watching ads, and generally through candid chatter. There is much more that can be done to improve each person’s education regarding the food we consume, how it was made and how it affects us.

Photo by Mohau Mannathoko on Unsplash

My experiences led me here. When Chef Carm asked each of us on our first day of class why we were pursuing an education in this field my answer was a simple statement: Food brings people together. My various classes have actively engaged us to think about what we want to achieve further to our graduation and mine has not been so clear. I’m still learning… a lot. Maybe you’ll find me working in a restaurant or hotel. Maybe you’ll come to a gathering I host. Perhaps you’ll visit my café in the coming years. I’m not one to limit myself, so maybe it means merging different aspects of the foodservice industry altogether and creating my own thing.

Whatever it ends up being, I hope you’ll stay connected and continue to follow my journey alongside me at thechitchat.ca!