Gemma It’s the early 90s in mid winter and a family of five sit down to Sunday dinner. The setting is a semi detached house, in a small town, in the North West of England. It’s winter time, cold and dark outside and the house if filled with the hustle of family life.
Usually this family sits down to a roast dinner on a Sunday, but this Sunday is different, busy and productive. Though the chicken has been roasting for hours it is suddenly 5 O’clock and time is ticking by. The Mum has to make a call. There are three kids to feed, bath and reset for the week ahead. There is homework to do, a house to tidy and a family to love. In the assessment of what matters she announces: we’re having roast chicken and stuffing sandwiches for dinner. It’s what everyone wants to hear, not least the eldest daughter who does most of the help in the kitchen.
This is a story from my family. The eldest daughter is me. This memory connects me to a visceral feeling of love, connection and happiness from childhood. I sit with my sisters on the carpet in front of the fire. My Mum and Dad sit on the sofa. We each have a plate of hot roast chicken sandwiches. The piping hot stuffing starts to melt the cold butter that’s pressed against the soft white bread. The chicken is seasoned with salt and pepper and this food is love.
Coronation Street is on the tv, it’s dark outside, and cold. We are safe, together, warm and connected. Today I’m making roast chicken and stuffing sandwiches for our lunch. As I make them I think back to that time of belonging and connection. I sit and sink my teeth into the soft bread, chicken and the hot stuffing and cold butter combo. I am transported back in time.
Food is a way to connect a family. It doesn’t have to be complex, it doesn’t have to be fancy, you don’t even have to be sat at the table. But the act of eating together brings us together. If you are worried about what you are feeding your family, try to let go of that stress. Keep it simple, do what works for your people and as often as you can, eat and love together.
Gem
