A Salute to Love

2012 started out like a whirlwind and we are only a month and a half into it! We (my family) gave tribute to my dear Auntie who passed last month. The woman who taught me so much, from how to cook everything not only from scratch but with love. No one left her home hungry and if you couldn't make it to her home you would not sit at yours and be hungry. She was meals on wheels. I couldn't figure out how this woman could make everything taste just heavenly. She never used a recipe, wrote anything down nor did she measure a single ingredient. I used to watch her cook and it was a beautiful performance. She would hum and sing the entire time. It was magical and poetic and now it was gone.

My attempts to try and get this recipe or learn this technique seemed to have slipped through my fingers, but did it really? As I prepare meals for my family everyday I may look up a recipe but seldom do I follow it, always adding my own touch. I am always "throwing" something together with what I have on hand and rarely miss the chance to invite friends over to learn a new dish. I didn't have to try and capture what was already in me I just needed to recognize and salute it! Her love for all of us is in us and I didn't miss it. I took a few snapshots of my beloved Auntie in her young days and of her home as a reminder of where it all started. This is how I choose to celebrate Valentines Day...a Salute to a woman I love dearly!