Monday, April 18, 2011

FOR JAPAN

We had a small earthquake today. It was a big enough jolt that my first instinct was to grab Bella and pull her away from the big kitchen window. We held each other for a minute, her hands firmly gripping my lower back, her head resting on my sternum. I could feel my heart pounding into her forehead. There was absolute silence except for my deep breathing as I attempted to slow my heart rate. Then our dog started barking and a bunch of frazzled deer ran down our street.

We felt so lucky.

We sat right down at the computer to look at the earthquake map. "Wow, mama. There it is." Yup. There it was. A little red square.

4 minutes ago. 3.4 on the Richter scale. 2:57 pm.

"Bella, just so you know, the earthquake in Japan was 9.0. And it lasted for several minutes."

We both exhaled loudly. No talking as we imagined what it must have felt like. A shake so strong that it moved the earth on its axis.

Last week, Dash, Bella, and I talked about the earthquake. Dash had picked up a bit of information from the playground.

"Mama. Did you know there was an earthquick in Japan. And all the waves came from underground?" 

Bella set him straight. "Dash. It's an earthQUAKE not earthQUICK. And the waves weren't underground. The earthquake was underground and it caused a tsunami that came to shore and killed lots of people."

Dash looked terrified. "Is the earthquick coming here?" He gets the same look when I tell him to buckle his seat belt or the police will come after him.

Bella froze. I answered carefully. "Yes, it could come here. But we will try to be prepared."

But Dash felt like he needed to do something right away. "This is for Japan." Dash slowly piled orange sections, salt, pepper, thyme, and lemon juice into a tall glass. And then he covered it all with water. "I'm going to save this in the fridge for Japan." We kept it there for a week. He wouldn't let me throw it out. Finally he felt satisfied that he had done his bit for Japan.

Bella and I also made some food for Japan.

Over the years, I've cooked for many sleep-deprived new parents, sick family members, a friend with a broken heart. The attention you give the ingredients, the care you take in packaging up the food, even the delivery, all feel different from daily cooking. And cooking for Japan felt the same way.
Bella's school had a bakesale. She made chocolate chip cookies. "Bella. Don't lick your fingers. Don't eat the dough. These cookies are for Japan." She listened. Her second grade class made $389 dollars in 35 minutes. $1 a treat. That's a lot of treats.

We contributed cookies and a chocolate cake to chef Samin Nosrat's Bakesale For Japan. This started with four Bay Area locations and exploded in a few weeks to a nationwide bakesale. $124,000 and counting.

I was also asked to contribute a recipe to a food blogger cookbook called Peko Peko: A Charity Cookbook for Japan. It features some of the best food bloggers out there. Such an honor to be in their company.

Bella's recipe suggestion was Green Tea Snickers Bars. I countered with Avocado and Navel Orange Salad with Ponzu Vinaigrette.

"Mama, I'll make that salad with you as long as there is sushi rice. Lots of sushi rice."

"Deal."
I'm not going to post the recipe because Bella and I are hoping that you will buy the Peko Peko Cookbook. For Japan.

9 comments:

  1. My son and me did a paper crane for Japan, you can see:
    http://www.unajauladegrillos.com/2011/03/1000-grullas-por-japon.html

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    Replies
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  2. You could write about anything and I'd read it thoughtfully, peacefully, deeply, like when you teach yoga, when you cook, when you do anything. What a master. All so beautiful.

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  3. EvaHe: thanks for the link. many paper cranes were also made at bakesale for japan. dash and bella made many of them.

    jen: i'm blessed to know 7 amazing women named jen. which one are you? your comment blew me away and i want to thank you.

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  4. Hey Phyllis, let me begin by thanking you. As a college student prone to doing way to much and getting way too stressed by life, your blog provides me a much needed escape with every new post. I adore watching you and your amazing kids conquer the kitchen. I'm hooked on "DashandBella," I can't wait to keep reading more. Secondly, I would really like to buy a copy of Peko Peko, but when I click on the link there isn't anywhere to order one. Are they only being sold in stores?
    Thank you, Kate

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  5. kate,
    thanks for you kind words. i love that my blog is an escape for you.
    the peko peko cookbook is still being edited. you can send them your email and they'll let you know when it's ready for purchase. the box for your email is on the right navigation bar on the main page: http://pekopekocookbook.com/
    thanks!
    p

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  6. Oh my gosh you are such a gentle mom, I just found your site and I'm really enjoying reading through. The food looks delicious, but I'm really loving how sweetly you incorporate and refer to your children. Love. Thank you for this fresh air.

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  7. thank you, kristin. i love what you wrote.

    ReplyDelete
  8. All thanks to this great man called Dr Agbazara the great spell caster that bring back the joy in me by helping me to bring back my lover who break up with me Four months ago but now with me with the help of Dr Agbazara the great love spell caster. All thanks goes to him you can also contact him for help if you need him in times of troubles via: ( agbazara@gmail.com ) you can also WhatsApp on this Number ( +2348104102662 )







































    ReplyDelete