Simply Authentic...Your Soul Voice is Calling. The Zen of Chopping Vegetables

The Zen of Chopping Vegetables I just figured out why I love to cook. Or at least a big part of why I love to cook. Cooking has always appealed to me. I hated pulling weeds as a kid, but never minded helping Dad feed calves or giving Mom a hand in the kitchen. Certainly, my initial appreciation for the culinary arts stemmed from my mother, a terrific cook. Because of her and my aunts, I’ve been passionate about homemade meals since I was old enough to operate a knife and fork. Of course also – the big bonus to cooking for yourself – everything tastes exactly how I like it the very best. No mushrooms in the pasta sauce. Extra onion and Worcestershire sauce in the meatloaf. Extra freshly ground four pepper blend on just about everything but pancakes. And – let’s face it – we cooks (or at least this cook does) lap up the praise when a dinner guest takes a bite with something akin to ecstasy on their face, gets a second helping, or says something like “Oh…my…God…this…is…so…good.” Oh, yeah, that tastes good, too. Good reasons to cook, right? I like to cook so much I wrote a cookbook, for heaven’s sake! So imagine my surprise when I realized an entirely new reason to cook the Friday evening of Easter weekend. I was alone for the weekend as my beloved, an avid and crazy good kite flyer, was in a kite clinic in Long Beach, WA. Rather than going somewhere else, I decided to make a nice Easter dinner – with plenty of leftovers – at home. On a top-of-mind idea, I spontaneously invited a couple I met in acting class a couple years ago to join me. I gave them the option of Saturday evening or Sunday mid-day. Devin and Wayne accepted my invitation and opted for Saturday evening. So, there was I was, alone in the kitchen Friday evening. Even the cat was in a different room. My menu was famous LaBay Family potato salad, easy crock pot beans, a small, glazed roasted ham, cooked carrots, steamed broccoli, and applesauce cake for dessert. (My guests brought a fresh spinach salad and fine bottle of red Spanish wine.) At some point in the evening, it hit me I was completely mindful and present…body, mind, spirit, breath…while I was chopping carrots. I can best describe it as I “came to” after having been in that state for quite a while. I’m no stranger to meditation, yoga, shiatsu massage, polarity, even hypnosis…all of which can put us into what George and I call “the Zone.” Yet for some reason, I didn’t realize until that moment…cooking can bring me to that space as well. One more reason to love cooking! Action Step: What is it for you? What activity or exercise brings you into complete, present mindfulness? Perhaps something to do with art? Gardening? Mountain climbing? Motorcycle riding? Swimming? Being in a boat? Do that as often as you can, and let us know what works for you on the blog! You might encourage someone else to dive in and try it too. If you found this post helpful, please share it with your friends! Authentically Yours, Laura