A is for Artist

I've known the chef who prepared our 13-course dinner last night for several years. I've enjoyed his cooking on a couple of occasions, but I had never embarked what he calls a journey menu at his newish restaurant in DC. Flavors popped in three bite events, and each dish was enhanced by multiple textures and colors too. This talent he has to gather ingredients like cuttle fish, foie gras, snails, and rose petals and present them in beautiful, edible packages is evidence of creativity, knowledge, organization, and hours of labor. Some might say these are skills that students develop while they're in school, although I'm pretty sure that RJ has said that school, even culinary, was not his thing.

I think of my students, most of them unsure of what their future holds. What will they do with their talents and gifts? In traditional classrooms, we write, we read, we talk, and write some more. But maybe through that practice, they are becoming tuned in to the world around them, exploring possibilities, taking risks. I hope. For if any of them find a way to take pride in their work and create something as special as what I ate last night, the world will be better off.

Life lesson: Gifts come in many shapes and sizes.