Stirring Up Mindfulness:
Alone In the Kitchen
by Maya Frost
Put on your apron! It's time to stir up a batch of mindfulness.
Julia Child, the trilling television chef who taught millions of Americans
how to prepare French food without being hoity-toity, died in her sleep at the
age of 92. She was glowingly eulogized for her spirit, her humor, and her ability
to share her passion for cooking and fine dining.
I actually skipped a few days of high school to stay home and watch her show.
I was fascinated by her confidence in the kitchen, and I absolutely loved the
way she dealt matter-of-factly with her mistakes. The line she used to excuse
a dropped chicken or imprecisely flipped potato pancake? "You're alone in the
kitchen, anyway." Just patch it up and serve with a smile.
We would do well to stir in a little of Julia's wisdom when it comes to stewing
in our own juices. For those of us likely to simmer in frustration or stick to the
fear pan, her gentle and humorous approach to making mistakes is a
refreshing reminder to be forgiving in order to be fabulous.
A mischievous teen and notorious good-time girl in college, Julia didn't set out to
impress anyone but herself. Along the way, she inspired millions. Her wildly popular
cookbook, "The Way To Cook", made gourmet food attainable to anyone
willing to give it a go.
Child herself served up some delicious morsels of advice for the way to live:
1) Start at any age. Julia grew up completely oblivious to her potential in the kitchen,
relying on the family cook for meals and snacks. She didn't take a cooking class
until she was 34 years old, and it wasn't until the age of 51 that she started
cooking before the masses on television. She continued to write cookbooks
throughout her eighties. If you've never even thought of doing a mindfulness
practice until now, no worries! It's never too late to start.
2) Move past your mistakes. If you find yourself kneading the same thoughts,
whipping up some emotions, or punching down your view of yourself, simply
dump that flattened feelings soufflé in the trash and move on.
You're alone in your head, anyway.
3) Do it for yourself. Julia Child always ended her television shows by sitting at a
beautiful table set for one and raising her glass of wine to the camera with a
melodic, ascending "Bon Appetit!" She made it seem perfectly reasonable to
spend time lovingly preparing a delicious meal for yourself. She delighted in the
idea of cooking--and dining--for the sheer joy of the experience.
By remembering that we are never too old to start, that we must expect to make mistakes
as we keep moving forward, and that we need not impress anyone but ourselves,
we can stir up mindfulness wherever we are.
I still think that staying home to watch Julia Child should have been an excused
absence from school. She taught me the value of demystifying difficult concepts
in order to embrace learning without fear.
Bon appetit!
© 2004-2020 Maya Frost
When sharing, please include the following:
Maya Frost is an author, mindfulness trainer, and creative change strategist.
Learn more at MayaFrost.com
Read more tips and articles about mindfulness!
Julia Child, the trilling television chef who taught millions of Americans
how to prepare French food without being hoity-toity, died in her sleep at the
age of 92. She was glowingly eulogized for her spirit, her humor, and her ability
to share her passion for cooking and fine dining.
I actually skipped a few days of high school to stay home and watch her show.
I was fascinated by her confidence in the kitchen, and I absolutely loved the
way she dealt matter-of-factly with her mistakes. The line she used to excuse
a dropped chicken or imprecisely flipped potato pancake? "You're alone in the
kitchen, anyway." Just patch it up and serve with a smile.
We would do well to stir in a little of Julia's wisdom when it comes to stewing
in our own juices. For those of us likely to simmer in frustration or stick to the
fear pan, her gentle and humorous approach to making mistakes is a
refreshing reminder to be forgiving in order to be fabulous.
A mischievous teen and notorious good-time girl in college, Julia didn't set out to
impress anyone but herself. Along the way, she inspired millions. Her wildly popular
cookbook, "The Way To Cook", made gourmet food attainable to anyone
willing to give it a go.
Child herself served up some delicious morsels of advice for the way to live:
1) Start at any age. Julia grew up completely oblivious to her potential in the kitchen,
relying on the family cook for meals and snacks. She didn't take a cooking class
until she was 34 years old, and it wasn't until the age of 51 that she started
cooking before the masses on television. She continued to write cookbooks
throughout her eighties. If you've never even thought of doing a mindfulness
practice until now, no worries! It's never too late to start.
2) Move past your mistakes. If you find yourself kneading the same thoughts,
whipping up some emotions, or punching down your view of yourself, simply
dump that flattened feelings soufflé in the trash and move on.
You're alone in your head, anyway.
3) Do it for yourself. Julia Child always ended her television shows by sitting at a
beautiful table set for one and raising her glass of wine to the camera with a
melodic, ascending "Bon Appetit!" She made it seem perfectly reasonable to
spend time lovingly preparing a delicious meal for yourself. She delighted in the
idea of cooking--and dining--for the sheer joy of the experience.
By remembering that we are never too old to start, that we must expect to make mistakes
as we keep moving forward, and that we need not impress anyone but ourselves,
we can stir up mindfulness wherever we are.
I still think that staying home to watch Julia Child should have been an excused
absence from school. She taught me the value of demystifying difficult concepts
in order to embrace learning without fear.
Bon appetit!
© 2004-2020 Maya Frost
When sharing, please include the following:
Maya Frost is an author, mindfulness trainer, and creative change strategist.
Learn more at MayaFrost.com
Read more tips and articles about mindfulness!