11/28/2023
This might have been one of the busiest years of my life (so far), juggling a full time job, pop ups, a move up the mountain, building community, and working with Second Generation Seeds as a partner chef.
I’m sleeping very deeply nowadays, gearing up for the winter months of hibernation and a trip back to the homeland with fellow q***r / trans việt chosen family at the end of the year. With all that is going on in the world, I am grateful to be amongst loved ones, lifting each other up to do the good work where one cannot. I show up when I can and if I can’t, I’m rooting for those who are showing up.
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I’m looking back and thinking about the past few months wrapping up work with Second Generation Seeds and I fall into a well of appreciation for being able to explore crops like Tia Tô and Rau Đến (Amaranth) that are culturally relevant and significant to the Việt community. While working on these seed trials with , experimenting with recipes, and cooking traditional dishes, I found myself asking relatives so many questions which then led me down an ancestral well where I felt resilience, struggle, but also warmth and joy. In Việtnam, I found myself seeing Tía Tô and Rau đến everywhere I went, even just on a walk through the neighborhood. In Việtnam and here at home in the states, one thing was common: it’s grown in the home garden, in pots, styrofoam containers, cans, anything that will hold soil and started from propagations of the strongest stem. Kellee and I left off on the question: what happens when these crops aren’t available to propagate anymore?
These pictures don’t encapsulate the healing, fullness, and magic of this work
1. Spring roll bar with the Việt community at
2. Bò nướng lá tía tô
3. Crispy crunchy fresh salad with nước chấm dressing
4. and I at the
5. reading the first issue of zine!
6. culinary healing team
7. Altar featuring photos of my ancestors (great-grandparents, grandpa, and uncle)
8. and I serving rau đến soup
9. Rau đến tasting
