Food and Family
My favorite Filipino food in the world to cook is lumpia - a small, delightful package of savory goodness made of chopped vegetables and meat filling encased in a thin, pastry lumpia wrapper. Lumpia is a staple at every family gathering and party, and it takes several different people's efforts to make the delectable savory snack.
The process of making lumpia is always a big family ordeal and involves every single family member to get done. Growing up, I have vivid memories of waking up to the delectable aroma of the savory lumpia frying, and going downstairs into the kitchen to find my mom, aunts, cousins, and grandmother preparing dozens and dozens of lumpia rolls. I was fascinated by the buzz and banter that overwhelmed the room - my mom, aunts, and grandmother gossiping loudly in Tagalog with each other on the latest news and my cousins arguing with each other over who got to cut the vegetables and who was tasked with the monotonous job of separating the lumpia wrappings.
Typically, the little kids were tasked with the simple and easy job of separating the piled sheets of lumpia wrappings, using their tiny hands to delicately remove each wrap from one another so as not to rip the paper-thin sheets. The older kids are tasked with the harder job of dicing the carrots, green onions, and garlic for the filling, while the adults assemble and fry the lumpia rolls to be freshly cooked and eaten. By now, I have participated in each of the different tasks, becoming an expert growing an appreciation for each person’s contribution to making the iconic savory snack.
Seeing the chaos of the kitchen with everybody laughing and cooking together brings me so much happiness. And now more than ever, I appreciate how the process of making lumpia brings me closer to my culture and my family. It allows me to be present with the people that I love and, and have gratitude for these precious moments I get to share with them celebrating our love in the food we make together. Life has been exceptionally busy nowadays, and I get emotional reminiscing the special moments and the feeling of love overwhelming me. My family has taught me so much more than how to cook, they taught me what true love looks like in physical form. I love and appreciate my time with my family, with these memories immortalized in me forever.
This is a lovely piece of writing, Belle! I like how you really brought your reader into your kitchen with the second paragraph. The chaotic banter that you describe remind me of my own family. You might want to spend some more time describing the smell of it, so that the reader can really picture it.
ReplyDeleteI loved the imagery of your blogpost and the way you drew the reader into your kitchen. It was interesting learning about what this tradition means to you and your family. I appreciated the way you described what lumpia was and gave the reader a visual. Perhaps you could talk about how you learned to participate in the various tasks and how you have grown throughout the process. You might want to consider adding some information about sharing the lumpia as a meal with your family beyond the process of making it.
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