(published in Words Without Borders, January 2009)

http://www.wordswithoutborders.org/?lab=FaridKitchen

Ruth loved flour. Mother loved the kitchen. And I loved Ruth and Mother. I grew up at the large kitchen table, watching Ruth sift flour and mix various kinds of dough. I learned to walk while holding on to Mother’s skirt as she chopped onions, boiled potatoes, and minced meat.

My mother, a beautiful cheerful woman, always sang in the kitchen, often old songs by Frank Sinatra: Fly me to the moon, Let me play among the stars . . . ( Read more )