Writing this while I am literally eating a New York strip steak.
Unpopular opinion: We Asians / Asian Americans don’t have exactly the best relationship with food. I also acknowledge this isn’t limited to our culture; I am writing this piece as somebody who is within this specific culture. Before the pitchforks come out, I am acknowledging that food is a great way to learn history, bring people together, bring joy, convey love and much more. I’m never going to deny that.
What I am getting at is how much pride we have in the food. The nice fancy things we eat (Fancy restaurants). The amount we get to eat (Have you see Vegas buffets?). The amount we drink. The taking of pictures of things we eat. Again, there’s nothing wrong with doing any of those things. What I am asking is, how often are we pairing it with gratitude? We feel good in the moment of getting to eat something wonderful, get a food coma, and then already the talk begins about “what are we eating for the next meal?”. When can we take a pause for a moment and dig into uncomfortable truths? What holes are we trying to fill with all that excess and will the hole ever be filled?
I have been definitely guilty of being proud and forgetting gratitude. Proud that I could eat a 24oz porterhouse. Proud that I could down many a chicken wing. Proud that I could go shot for shot. But what was I saying to myself?
I will not speak for anybody other than myself. What I’m feeling nowadays is that it’s such a shame that I was THAT proud.
Proud that I could consume more than I needed.
A literal animal died and was consumed in just excess. A lot of people worked hard to make food and drink happen. This isn’t some “There’s some hungry children around the world” statement. It’s a statement that resources are limited in the world, and I’m not giving it its due weight.
I feel like I would be a more “healthy” proud if I took a steak and cooked and gave it to a friend and made their day, rather than be proud of my overconsumption. Then, I’d be creating and putting into the world, than being a mindless consumer.
Transforming and adding in gratitude is a process, and I’m working on it day by day. Indulgence and pleasure aren’t bad by any means. I can indulge and I can be grateful for if I just acknowledge it.
I’m grateful for the hard work I put in so that I could buy steaks from Costco.
I’m grateful for the cow, the luxury to eat meat, and the luxury to eat a yummy tender piece.
I’m grateful for the workers all along the supply chain and farmers that got it from farm to store, in a way that was safe to consume and I don’t worry about eating it medium rare.
I’m grateful for
I’m grateful for all the other things that I’m overlooking but are a part of the process of simply cooking a steak.