I love aprons.

When I was a little girl, we would go to my grandparents’ house every Sunday  for dinner and Grandma always wore an apron.  Grandpa would often help Grandma in the kitchen and he would wear an apron too.  They were good cooks.  Delicious roasts, lovely fresh vegetables, and tasty baked goods always featured at those dinners.

My mother, on the other hand, was a horrible cook.  Bland, over-salted, and boring meals permeated my childhood.  Our family cookbook was called “Shades of Gray” before it was sexy!  Part of the reason I love to cook now is because of the horrid meals I was forced to endure growing up.  Mom never wore an apron.

For me, aprons mean that good food is going to happen.  If I put on an apron, I am going to intentionally go into my kitchen and prepare food that I will enjoy or that will make someone happy.  Aprons mean intentionality.  I consciously put on an apron and choose how I am going to prepare food.  It means that I have decided to cook.  I’m not just going into the kitchen and shoving something in my face because it is a mealtime.  I’m going to prepare a good meal for myself because, even though I live alone and could easily reheat a frozen meal, I deserve to eat good food.

So, I love aprons.  I have five of them.  They remind me of my grandparents.  They tell me that I deserve to eat good, healthy food that I can prepare for myself.  Two of my aprons are red.  One of those has yeast sock puppets on it.  (If you know why, leave a comment!) My red aprons are my reminders that good food is my right and my responsibility.