Pablo C.

I opened and looked inside my sparsely stocked refrigerator to try and scrounge up items for my makeshift chicken soup. Picking up a half-molded onion from one of the crisper drawers, I realized my next meal might come harder than imagined. Chicken, check. Noodles, check. Onion, half-check. If only I had taken the time to learn how to cook from my mother before I moved for college. She always said that life was like cooking, but I could never understand why. My mother will always remain an enigma to me: how she managed to raise three kids on her own (all boys), balance two jobs as a nursing assistant, keep herself and us all in nice clothes, and still prepare delicious meals. Her strength, determination and beauty have always been my inspiration. Even as she approaches fifty, she remains unchanged, like some super-human sent from another planet to protect me: my hero, in every sense of the word. Alas, my hero is human. Last year, she was diagnosed with high cholesterol. Without proper maintenance, heart disease is only meals away. Under strict orders, her famous recipes were revamped to be healthier, and the dusty treadmill once a forgotten relic, is now part of her daily routine. As I watch her today, alive and radiant in the kitchen, I finally understand. The universe is life’s kitchen and life’s recipe, simply: one part family, one-part friendships, one tablespoon good food, one teaspoon balance. Bake until golden. Sprinkle with LOVE.

Fabric(s):

Printed chiffon for the midsection, stretch satin for the rest, self lined.

Stylistic embellishments:

The chiffon sewed into place to look somewhat woven to reach around to the back side and twist into an intricate knot then fall into two tails, one white, one red.

Color(s) used:

Red and white. The Campbell’s logo printed in black.