"What Happened In The Kitchen?"

The kitchen is my domain. Not simply because I’m a woman or because I’m a culinary professional, but because it is where my heart beats … where not only my body is fed, but, my varied energies (artistic, emotive, innovative …) are nourished. I am deeply emotional.



In most homes, the kitchen table is the preferred hub of activity. It’s the place where we gather to share our meals, where we sit and dole out our opinions, where we assemble to play our games and sometimes where we choose to air our grievances.


I was asked that question recently - “what happened in the kitchen?” - by a woman who witnessed me having a conversation with another woman. Our brief chat in the kitchen was unexpected and edgy, but ended in a surprisingly life-affirming way for me. It could have gone much differently, believe me.


I’ve always been of the mindset that women should uphold, affirm, encourage and instruct one another constructively. Cattiness against other women has never been a position that I take. I am awed daily by the power of women and ultimately see us as a sisterhood, and not as opponents in some make-believe battle.


So … It was nice to discover that in a very tense moment, when anything might have been said, my intrinsic belief in solidarity predominated and I was able to make an unlikely, fleeting connection.


The answer to the question is: compassion. That’s what happened in the kitchen.