Gratitude in the Kitchen

I quietly make my way downstairs, the burnt orange sunrise peeking through the windows. The silence of the morning is one of my favorite things. Knowing I don’t have to be anywhere and I get to savor the morning is the best feeling.

I turn the kettle on and open a bag of loose leaf tea, I stare at the leaves in wonder. Someone thousands of years ago decided to drink the fallen leaves of a tree and found them delicious. Millions of hands across centuries have picked, cultivated, and processed billions of tea leaves. Just to grow the specific leaves I would be drinking this morning. So much love, care, and attention was given to these tea leaves so they could land in my cup. For this I am grateful.

Sipping my tea, I turn to make my oatmeal. Oats are a staple in several kitchens across the world. Their simplicity has a way of masking their beauty. Rain, wind, sun, and soil have come together to bring these rolled oats to my breakfast table. Hundreds of people whose lives are as complex as my own have made sure I have the privilege of nourishing my body. For this I am grateful.

Gratitude has a way of shifting perspective. Instead of thinking about all the things I don’t have, for this moment, I am grateful for the things I do. And I understand this is difficult to do. We do not all share the same privilege, we are not all on the same journey. But gratitude in the kitchen also serves another purpose.

It serves to remind us of all the steps that the food we put on the table had to go through to get to us. From seed, to soil, to sprout, to harvest, packaging, shipping, shelving and cooking. So many hands and lives are involved in a simple bowl of oatmeal. By practicing gratitude for the food on our table we begin to reconnect with where our food comes from. We begin to understand why tomatoes are the sweetest in the height of summer. Why some spices are as expensive as gold, and why eating plants helps us feel so good.

Reconnecting to where our food comes from can help us shape how to see food, how we seek to nourish ourselves. Even if all that means for you right now is worshiping a bowl of oatmeal or a cup of tea.