I’m so sure wherever my mom is, she would be shocked hearing this because anytime I talk about things I’m grateful for, I mention her twice. It’s rather funny I’m here talking about something no one thought would even come to mind when counting my blessings. I won’t even be surprised if people say “ah Abena, of all the things to be grateful for, this is what you choose..
Growing up, my brothers loved food. Then, there was me on the other hand, who wanted nothing to do with food. My mom devised so many strategies just to get me to eat, so many. I really wasn’t a hungry kid so I didn’t see the importance of food. You’d have to chase me with a cane or deceive me with ice cream. One of my favorite strategies my mom devised was letting me eat with my brothers.
After several observations, my mom started dishing our food together.
To her, that would mean I would also rush and eat because that was exactly what my brothers used to do. One thing in my family is that, we are very fast in doing everything. If you know me well, you would know how many breathe ins and outs I do before talking to people in public because of how fast I talk. So just like how we talk, my mom was expecting me to copy how my brothers used to eat. It was a total failure. Before, I would stretch the spoon out in the bowl for the third time, there would be no food left.
After so many years now, I finally am in my hunger phase( I’m always hungry). You don’t have to tell me twice to eat. In fact you don’t have to tell me at all, because I will find my way to the kitchen myself. It got to a time, I was literally sleeping with snacks because dawn hunger was a constant thing in my life at that point. Even at home, I always make sure that there’s extra food in the fridge before going to bed because I could wake up at 2am very hungry.
As someone who really didn’t want anything to do with food during her childhood, my relatives are always shocked to hear my continuous rants about being hungry. To be honest, as I said, I know I’m supposed to be grateful for my family and friends and I really am but I just wanted to emphasize about how grateful I am for food. I can’t even imagine life without food because off late I’m always hungry. Food has all of my heart, not just a special part. It gives me joy now, I now understand why my brothers loved food. I could be having a really bad day and right after seeing food, my mood would change.
Anytime, I complain about heart break or anything sad, the first question my friends ask is if I’ve eaten. That should tell you how important food is to me now. It has the power to positively turn mood around.
All images are mine