Worth the Work

The sad truth is that people in my generation are growing increasingly apathetic to hard work. Obviously this is no news flash, but sometimes going through a lot of effort for one small thing can seem pointless. This has come through in my experience with cooking. Why would I want to spend an hour or more preparing something I’m just going to devour anyway only to be left with a stack of dishes the size of Mount Everest, a floor covered in crumbs, and ingredients strewn across the kitchen? With all of that to anticipate wouldn’t it just be easier to order a pizza? Well, not too long ago I met someone who made me rethink my apathy toward the cooking process. This friend argued that cooking is an amazing art, that he loves the hands on engagement of crushing garlic and chopping onions, and that nothing beats the feeling of a successful cooking experience. It took me a little while, to say the least, to get on board with this mentality. After burning my jambalaya, setting the stove on fire trying to make bacon, and even regressing in my ability to make pancakes, I was ready to go back to frozen dinners for life. It wasn’t until I really started to acknowledge that all art takes both hard work and a lot of practice that I was able to start enjoying cooking. It’s the same with music, painting, drawing, and even writing. Understanding this has refreshed me in my approach to all of my artistic interests – writing, photography, music, and now cooking. The more I push aside all of the reasons not to do something, the better I get at it. Now I’m making acorn squash and eggplant parm like nobody’s business. Once you can pull down the creative process from this idealized space, you can take the first (and hardest) steps and get practicing. Then, the dishes, the time, and the mess will all be worth it and you can finally throw away the stacks of takeout menus in your drawer.