From Kitchen to Cushion
zen of cooking and writing
My journey as a writer started at some point in elementary school. The teacher had given a creative writing assignment. I wrote a little story about what would happen if I woke up one day and found that I was a girl instead of a boy. It was quite hilarious and I won some kind of award and they put it up on the wall at the library. As I progressed through school I pretty much only wrote what was asked of me. Doing the required work to get through school. I was pretty good at it but associated it mostly with the stress of having to get my work done. Fast forward to decades later… I’ve been working in kitchens since I was sixteen and worked my way up the ranks, landing my first executive chef job in my early thirties. I also landed a significant drug addiction and a life that was obsessed with work, partying and not a whole lot else. I woke up one day on the verge of divorce, pretty much unemployable and realized the fun had stopped years ago. Rehab happened. Eventually the divorce came. I began to journal a bit, healing each time I put pen to paper. Another marriage. My beautiful boys arrived and yet another divorce. My life in the kitchen held strong. It was the only place I felt truly comfortable. When Covid hit and the entire restaurant industry turned upside down, once again I found myself questioning my life’s path. I began to write my story. Three years later I have written a memoir, left the restaurant, opening a gourmet hotdog truck and personal chef business. My life is full and amazing. My teenage boys breath life into me every day. Struggle still happens but I continue to grow. Through a daily meditation practice (mostly every day) I find the loving kindness inside myself and those around me. The challenges of starting a new business are great and I’m learning a lot. I will come back to these pages to share the journey with you. You may find it helpful, hilarious, sad, joyful or just plain boring. You may end up asking yourself what the fuck did I just read or come away with tears in your eyes. My hope is that I end up touching a part of you, you haven’t seen in a while and perhaps you will grow along side me on this journey