Training for the half marathon was an exercise in baby steps. I began so slowly, that it seemed I would never make progress, and somehow, eleven months later, I crossed the finish line after walking 13.2 miles.
Slow and steady progress is also the way in which I am learning to cook.
As a start, I made my first batch of beans. There was some question from sighted friends, as to whether I would have trouble sorting them, but it turned out to be no problem whatsoever. While they weren’t the greatest beans I have ever eaten, they were edible, and I didn’t die. Because . . . positivity!
I made a couple of minor mistakes with them, I salted as if I had one bowl instead of one pot, and I forgot that beans soaked for 24 hours cook much quicker than those that soak for less time. In the past, I might have focused only on what I did wrong. But the new and improved version of me decided they were healthier than if I had eaten fast food.
Just yesterday, a friend showed me how to chop and season several kinds of vegetables. We had squash, zucchini, sweet potatoes, broccoli, carrots, yellow onions, peppers, and mushrooms. Once I seasoned them with sea salt, pepper, rosemary, basil, and a bit of oregano, they were fantastic! That says a lot, coming from someone who never liked vegetables.
Learning to cook is much like running a marathon. Although each step counts, success lies in overall progress, not the individual step. The journey continues.
If you are blind, and you’d like to learn to cook, this resource might be helpful to you.
Preprimer Cooking by Sally Jones
I’m not even sure this book is in print any longer, but it is wonderful for a blind cook. The author explains what food should look like, how it should feel and smell before, during, and after preparation. It was written in 1972, so it doesn’t account for modern convenience food, but it is invaluable for a beginner cook. It is definitely worth purchasing the book, or borrowing it from a library if you can.
Porch Swing Writing 