It is not 'only' food, I said heatedly. There's meaning hidden underneath each dish.

I felt that I was really living in the moment. I did not know where my life was going, but right now the future did not trouble me.

One of the secrets to staying young is to always do things you don't know how to do, to keep learning.

Anyone who thinks they're too grown up or too sophisticated to eat caramel corn, is not invited to my house for dinner

It is not 'only' food, I said heatedly. There's meaning hidden underneath each dish.

Plain fresh bread, its crust shatteringly crisp. Sweet cold butter. There is magic in the way they come together in your mouth to make a single perfect bite.

Growing up, I was utterly oblivious to the fact that Mom was teaching me all that. But I was instantly aware of her final lesson, which was hidden in her notes and leters. As I read them I began to understand that in the end you are the only one who can make yourself happy. More important, Mom showed me that it is never too late to find out how to do it.