Food as Celebration
We eat for a variety of reasons. Most of the time it’s to fuel our body, or mind and spirit. We also eat for comfort, to affirm our cultural identities and traditions, and to celebrate big and small life moments. Most of the time we feel shame if we eat for reasons other than to fuel our body. As a care doula and registered dietitian, I never want people to feel shame about what and when they eat.
Holidays bring up a lot of feelings. We can be sad that loved ones are no longer with us to celebrate, stressed to be around family members, or happy to reconnect with friends. At the same time, our calendars are packed with party after party to celebrate the holidays and New Years. Around all of these moments and occasions, food tends to be at the center—and for good reason. In these moments food can bring us together. It is e a spiritual practice to prepare and share a family recipe that has been passed down from generation to generation. We create memories when we bake Christmas cookies with friends. These moments are more than just food. They help us build community and strengthen our bonds and connections to one another. I hope this holiday season you can move past the shame, and focus on all the beautiful ways food nourishes us.
There is one life moment that we at Care Doula forgot to celebrate which was our One Year in Business Anniversary. October 2024 marked one year of making meals and growing our little community. In that time, we have explored the cuisines of six different cultures; created the Nourished Weekly meal program focused on providing nourishing and balanced meals; and provided meal solutions for over ten individual personal chef clients. Also, we participated in Crave, a culinary competition supporting Feeding Our Community Partners (FOCP), where we showcased our mushroom galette while supporting FOCP’s important mission to ensure kids in our community are fed. Whether you bought meals or just followed along on our journey I’m eternally grateful for your support. Cheers to more meals and eating together in the New Year!
Kelsey with her culinary creation, Mushroom Galette, at Crave for Feeding Our Community Partners.