I recall working for a fellow in the early 1980s. He was nearing retirement. He could have been a war veteran; he had that 1940s look; the stature and moustache. To me he looked like a general. He said he lamented so many women going to work, rather than staying home. His point of view was that it was women who maintain the culture and he was worried that if both husband and wife were working our culture would be lost.
It had me think about my mother and my grandmothers who stayed at home and thus had the time to work on those details, especially around food; Christmas cookies in particular. But it wasn’t just special occasions, it was the made-from-scratch meal every day. Although my wife and I both worked, we did follow a core set of inherited recipes, often preparing meals on the weekend to be served as left-overs during the week.
As I read now how people are coping with the stay-at-home guidelines, many people are watching more TV (Netflix) and reading. But interestingly, cooking and gardening seem to be trending. I’m not here to try to explain why this might be or speculate about the role food plays in our psyche, as a means of connecting with people, a tie to our heritage, culture, may be a search for the past and the perceived stability in contrast to these turbulent times…
I wonder whether it will stick? Will people realise the pleasure of a home-cooked meal, both in eating it and as a creative outlet and as a result continue the practice after we are unleashed from our homes? Will people change their priorities, to make the time to cook a meal?
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