Tomorrow Cathy graduates from FCI (The French Culinary Institute). The little cap goes and in it’s place, the glory of a very, very tall hat. Cathy’s toque will announce (in a very not so subtle way) that she triumphed and survived the last six months. After the fruit tarts you saw in an October entry, there were cakes, plated desserts, chocolates, breads, sugar sculptures and chocolate creations whose purpose was to display petit fours (bite sized cakes) and even more chocolate! Early mornings, homework and tests, resembled the stress of medical school more than the alchemy of butter and flour.
The most interesting part of this culinary journey has been watching Cathy master not only her pastry dough, but also herself. In the crucible of the kitchen she has learned about what it’s like to meet expectations, work with other people and deal with deadlines and critiques. Not easy, not always pretty, but in the end, very impressive. Tomorrow’s graduation represents a lot of hard work, accomplishment and self-acceptance.
The celebration has started already. Cathy’s sister-in-law has come from France and we will be toasting with a lovely bottle of Champagne.
No comments:
Post a Comment