the heart of a home

I wish I could show you the daylight that drifts through my kitchen window at six in the evening. It is close to twilight and yet sunbeams are still finding their way into the silvery sink and onto the table where apples sit, patiently waiting to be baked or chewed. I am here, in my kitchen, and I am made to be pleasant by every cup of flour, kiss of cream, and loaf of bread that makes its way passed my teeth and into my belly.

The kitchen is the heartbeat and the lungs of the home. It is here where the smoke from morning coffee makes sense of the morning light. We meet here, not always at the same time, but we come to this room in our houses for the same reason: for nourishment and for life. I recognize my childhood whenever I see my mother's hands shaping dough and building cookies. I remember ham sandwiches at midnight and the sound of popcorn crackling while a movie sat on pause. It is the kitchen where candles are set ablaze on top of birthday cakes. It is the kitchen where tea is steeped for when our throats are sore. The kitchen, whether it's yours or mine, is a home for shared food and conversation, a place where you'll find your daily medicine, the kind that keeps your heart pumping and spirit stirring. A place good for the wellness of those who occupy it.

 There are no photographs from our kitchen. It's a very ordinary one. Tiled flooring instead of wood. Light colored cabinetry instead of dark. It has counters and cupboards and a place for us to meet and sit and eat. This kitchen is not my dream kitchen. It is not my mother's dream kitchen, but it is home, for us, for now and the daylight at dusk through the kitchen window is beautiful to me.

~

Here is an outfit I wore on a day after a sleepless night. If you look closely, you'll see darkened circles around my eyes. In a way, I'm glad I never learned how to Photoshop these blemishes and human marks on my skin. Let it be known that everybody gets dark moons beneath their eyes and bruises shaped like peaches on their elbows and knees. Each of us has been a witness to the unflattering shades of our skin after sleepless nights or sickness. Let us try to remember the grass is no greener, the meals in a dream kitchen no better, and the skin of another no prettier than our own.

The Outfit

Blouse – Oasap

  Hat – Topshop

Knee high socks – Free People

Boots – Thrifted from Value Village

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