I need you to get a good laugh at me, right now, yes, go on, laugh, I encourage you. Yesterday, I related how tired and how much of a good sleep I wanted, badly. Well, I got one today at the expense of almost not publishing a post. I was enjoying my nap which I took from around 4 pm, till 9:10 pm.
Our native meal, Ekpang Nkukwo
Do you know the moment I woke up, I was scared, it's already midnight? I ran to my sister's room to get my phone. Still very scared, I looked up at the wall clock and saw 9:10 pm. I heaved a sigh of relief. I was almost close to missing a day of publishing. Gosh, I would have been very angry with myself. I am glad I still have a few hours, and I'll do my best to talk about this topic with all amount of enthusiasm, and you'll learn a lot.
Why are we talking about food, parents, and children?
Once I woke up and ran helter-skelter in the house, mom was looking up at me, trying to decipher what seem to be the problem. I wasn't giving myself away, I kept her in suspense.
Mum added the ingredients after adding boiling water to it, and I took a shot
Then I noticed the plates. My junior brother had finished having his meal and the plates were still there. I began to wonder if mum had left some food for me. Or if she thought I will sleep till morning as a result of how tired I was. That thought is the beginning of this writing.
When should parents stop cooking for their kids?
I didn't know the right answer to this question, so I went on Google to find out what other people felt. I stumbled on lots of answers on Quora.
This was taken when she was adding vegetables
When they are ready and willing to learn
Someone said, parents should stop cooking for their children when they are ready, and willing to learn. I thought, what if the children are not ready nor willing to learn? I also questioned, how do parents know their children are ready? This human also mentioned that children should go and fend for themselves if they do not want to learn.
When Ekpang Nkukwo was almost ready
If they are vegetarian
I moved forward and found another answer, where this person said, the children should learn to cook their meals if they are vegetarians, and their parents are not.
I took this shot after I finished washing the periwinkles
He was saying this from a personal experience being a vegetarian and his parents weren't. He encouraged children who are vegetarians to look after their well-being by browsing recipes around their needs.
Never
A sweet individual gave his answer, he said, parents should never stop cooking for their kids. Whether they are all grown up or good cooks. He encouraged his children to come home with friends and he will be honored to cook their meals.
The moment I was done shredding the vegetables, I took a shot
This individual pointed out that all his children were food freaks. One was a trained chef, the other was a gourmand and the last one was an excellent baker and saute chef. Regardless of their cooking skills and abilities, he will make their meals. Again, he mentioned most of his family members were vegetarians, which didn't bother him at all. He made meals channeled towards their needs.
When they leave home
Yes, another answer, the lady said in bold print, that parents should stop cooking for their children when they leave home. She is the woman who loved a traditional family setting with everyone present on the table, digging into their meals; with joy, and happiness plastered around their faces.
I took a shot of the fish(called ibat, in my negative language) during preparations
Mehn, they were lots of answers and if not that time wasn't on my side, I would have dwelled upon all answers, reading and sharing with you.
How does my mum feel about cooking our meals?
Truly, I have no idea. I haven't mustered the courage to ask her. I often wonder but never truly asked. We are all grown. I don't stay with them anymore, except this week which we are having burial preparations.
I do know she still makes meals for the rest of the family, the only young person here is my junior brother. The rest of my siblings are grown up.
I filtered the crayfish, to eliminate dirt, chaffs, and debris before grinding
Right from birth, mum has always made our meals, she let us prepare them once in a while, but, we all can count how many times we were opportune to make meals at home because it wasn't much.
She took pride in waking up in the morning, and cooking fresh meals, and sharing it in different plates for the different faces present in the family for a particular day or period.
I stole the tray from mom, and took this shot, while she was sharing the meal,lol
Mum makes the best meals, her food is always delicious and satisfying. At this point, we are so dependent on her abilities and kindness in the kitchen.
I remember how she often made sure we had breakfast before going to school as young children, while we took care of the rest of the chores at home. As a kid, I always looked forward to the end of school, I was particularly enthusiastic about the food mum made for lunch.
A picture of my share
Most days I will return home from school with my friend. Mum was always happy to receive her. She will let us have portions of food to our satisfaction. My friend usually compliments mum and her food when we meet in school the next day. Mehn, I was very proud of my mum.
We all learned to cook, but she still makes our meals whenever we come around. The only time she doesn't do this for me is when I am away from them for a long while (I am away most of the time, sometimes, three to four months at my house). And we help her around the kitchen to prepare the ingredients for the food.
I don't know what we would have done if mum wasn't a caring and kind-hearted woman. We would probably have separate meals at different times, and not together as a family.
PS: All pictures were taken by me. I hadn't being home for a while, and when I visited, mum made Ekpang Nkukwo in my honour 🙈. I helped her with all the preparations, and use the advantage to take shots. I didn't have enough time to share the recipes and the shots then, today, I am glad I could share the pictures in my post.