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No Doubt About It...

This culinary school thing will, by far, be the most challenging thing I've ever done.

Truly, I'm about to have my mettle tested.  You know, see the stuff I'm made of.  Find out my quality.  And all those other heroistic cliches you've seen in pop culture.

Yesterday, the head of our program brought in foie gras for us to try (no apologies, animal rights activists).  He said he wanted us to expand our palates, try new things, expand our horizons.

And frankly, it was delicious.  Rich and savory, I was still tasting it ten minutes later.

Which brings me to my own, limited food experience.  I don't really mean eating-wise...I mean, I'll try anything new any day of the week.  But I'm beginning to understand that I am definitely lacking culture...and that I must have it in my life to feel whole.  And by culture, I don't mean Lays potato chips dipped in cottage cheese (which is that example that one student used to support his claim that "I love trying all kinds of crazy stuff").

 I consider myself a decent cook, but I am about to have my limits, not to mention my skills, pushed to their boundaries.  Am I ready for that?  I would like to think I have the humility to accept with grace any criticism about my kitchen skills (which I've been practicing much longer than many of the other students).  And I know they will be criticized, and I will have to change or get left behind.  I'm going to have to work harder than I ever have in my life, and I will be swallowing a lot of pride to get where I'd imagined myself being.

I'm definitely outside of my comfort zone.  But, if it means trying more things like foie gras, or working in Spain for six weeks, or feeling awesome after missing only two out of 34 on a math test (a subject area I have not thought about for a long time)...then I think I'm ready for the challenge.

Like a friend of mine reminds me, the (amazing, life-changing) journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.  And I can't help like feeling this is the best thing I've done for myself in a long time.

Comments

  1. the yellow fringeAugust 30, 2012 at 8:39 AM

    I worked in a French - German restaurant in a resort area in Germany, I think I ate every organ except, well, lets just say nearly everything at one time or another. Tried everything, the only thing I didn't like was great big eel, we got them live and had to kill them, some were 4 feet long, with little teeth that grit on the knife and leave a mark, so slick and strong it took two people to hold them to cut off the head. They taste like old butter. Little eels are a little better. If you go to Spain to work, I assume it will be like a German kitchen in the respect that most everything is from scratch, no can openers, no microwave.

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