I have heard it said that in order to be happy one must begin by feeling grateful. If this is true, then I must be a very happy person for I have a multitude of things to feel grateful for in my life: my family, my friends, and my career, for starters.
So much of my life revolves around food-- not so much the act of eating it, but also the crafting and sharing of dishes, the cultural discovery it gives rise to, and the conversations that ensue around the table.
This space is a prolongation of the pleasures found on my table, a door into my kitchen, a window into my world of food, and as such I offer you a serving of what has been a most exciting time in my life.
Earlier last summer, before the craziness and excitement of my book launch and tour took over, I was fortunate to break bread with the most inspiring group of women, fellow colleagues, writers, and lovers of life and food. We laughed, we cried; we agreed and disagreed; we fixed the world and unraveled it again for someone else to try to find order. We taught each other and learned from one another, all the while embracing our differences and finding common ground. And always, in the forefront and in the background, there was food. And so I'm grateful for the food on the table and the food of the soul.
I'm also very grateful to all of you, who came out to meet me during the first leg of my book tour:
And to those of you who came to my presentations to learn more about this new cuisine I discovered in the South. Here are some moments from my tour:
At the Bookmarks Festival in Winston-Salem
Meeting dear friends at Park Road Books in Charlotte.
At the beautiful Miami Culinary Institute.
At the Miami International Book Fair.
At a panel with my colleagues Raquel Rabade Roque and Chef Daniel Orr in Miami
This first leg of my tour took me to Nashville, Mississippi, Georgia, South Carolina , Florida, and through other states in this great country of ours.
As of late, my book tour brought me back home to North Carolina.
Here I am talking to a friend at Parker and Otis in Durham.
There is no bigger gift you can give a food writer than to read (and eat) her words. So for that, I want to thank YOU, dear reader. I am so grateful to the many of you who came to say hello and to those of you who have spread the word of my book. I'll continue my tour in the Spring (I will let you know where later, when my schedule is a bit more clear).
Everyone has heroes, or at least they should have them. I'm so grateful to mine, many of whom I met for the first time this year, all of whom inspire me.
Gratitude can mean so many things to so many people. I look upon this year, which has just started, with a deep hope that I may continue to do what I love. And I wish you health, the love of family, good friends, and many reasons to be grateful.
And to those special ladies (and you know who you are) I hope that our next retreat gives us more reasons to laugh and cry, to plan and dream, to push away and embrace, to challenge and encourage, and to celebrate big and small accomplishments around many a table in the future. Now that's something to be grateful for!
Copyright Sandra A. Gutierrez, 2012; All Rights Reserved. No part of this blog or its cotents or photographs may be used without express written consent of the author.
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