Food stories connect us – to each other, to the land and to different cultures. This excerpt is from a book completed last year about an adventurous, fun guy who loved to cook and who died far too young from cancer leaving behind a young son. Here is a bit more of his story.
Cooking was fun for Paul. He enjoyed the process of planning and mastering a recipe and sharing it with others. He loved authentic food, like refried beans made with black beans he had grown himself. He loved the salsa he and Lori canned, made with their own home-grown tomatoes.
Among his favourites were homemade tortillas using a press he had been given by a friend. When it was really cold in the winter, he and Lori would put on crazy Mexican Mariachi party music and turn up the heat!
They’d have a grand time eating shrimp tacos with homemade tortillas and Lori’s salsa verde at their pretend Mexico party. “As a family, we could never afford to go to Mexico except for that one time in the fall of 2007” but made up for it with authentic food and music at home.
By collecting Paul’s stories together we created a legacy book which ensures that his son will know who his dad was, and what was important to him
As we complete more Visual Life Stories it is becoming increasingly clear that by collecting memories which truly illustrate who someone is, we are immortalizing them in visuals and story. We are making them unforgettable.
Pretty much every personal life story we complete has recipes included. Food and stories go together. Here’s a fun website that celebrates Food and Stories.
I never had a chance to meet Paul, he had already died by the time I met his sister. In gathering stories from eight different people we pieced together his story – a compelling image of an incredibly fit, fun-loving guy.
Inside every person is a collection of memories and compelling stories. These stories inform who we are in the world and how we have lived our lives. They are stories worth collecting and visualizing so they can be shared.
Are you ready to collect your memories or help collect stories of someone else? Get in touch with me.
If you’ve enjoyed reading this, I would be so grateful if you shared it with a friend. Have a wonderful week.
