Kitchen reflections:
Lately, whenever I’m in the kitchen, washing rice, chopping veggies or anything to do with prepping a meal – whether breakfast, lunch or dinner, I tell myself, I’m doing all these because I love my family.
Cooking is not my passion. It is not my hobby. Many friends I know cook to de-stress. I used to be stressed (or sometimes still am) whenever I need to think of what to cook and how to cook so my family will enjoy the food.
Cooking is also not my gift. It is not something I excelled at. But I realised that the more I cook, the more practice I have, the better I am at it. I learned to ‘recycle’ left-over foods so they would be eaten as if they’re a new dish and no food is wasted. I find new ways to prep meals more efficiently – to defrost ahead of time, how much ingredients to use so it would be just the right taste, the right qty for my family. I also learned to plan better so that our helper can also share in our meals esp when we’re having food that she does not eat.
Cooking is not just a job for me. Even when we used to have a cook, it is my responsibility to decide what food to buy that my family like, that will be healthy for all of us. Even now when it is my job to cook, I am learning everyday to see it as my ministry.
I minister to my family when I do what I can to feed them healthy and see them happy enjoying their meals. I learned that just as I cook their fave food, I can also treat myself to something simple like laing, onion/tomatoes with salted eggs and sauteed veggies.
God shows me as far as I’m willing to listen and learn: learn to see from his point of view – that each task that I do no matter how small, trivial or seemingly insignificant, can be a ministry because of love.
This reminds me of another truth: God sees the unseen things that we do at home – things that we do diligently because we love our family. I have two friends whose hands conduct big choirs and orchestras. These two friends also use their two hands to clean the toilet. I’m touched by their humbling acts of service for their family.
And so I conclude my kitchen reflections with this bookmark that I got from our church choir many years ago.
