Another post on kueh
Somehow, kueh always gives me some insight into my family.
This time, it ain't really about appreciation for a certain family member, but more of a reflection on my family's rules. Family rules, in the family therapy context, aint always like about curfews or rules about the TV and the computer.
It's about certain values in the family, or certain routines that has been adapted to by each of the family member. Had dinner on Sunday at Arnold's Fried Chicken at City Plaza. As me and my friend sat down to order, it was suggested that maybe we could order a whole spring chicken and share it. I somehow flinched a little at it, even though I couldn't understand why.
I thought about how I always have this notion that buffets are better for gatherings than cze chars.
I really couldn't understand why, until Monday.
Had an exam at 5pm that day, and I wanted to leave early to go to school to study for that paper. So before I left, mom prepared breakfast for me. Breakfast was some mee chiam kueh that she bought from this stall near my new house. She bought all three flavours: peanut, coconut and tau sar.
If you're from an individualised family, you'd expect me, my mom and my dad to take one flavour each. But no, things don't work that way in my family. My mom promptly cut each mee chiam kueh into 3 pieces, and each of us had to take one piece from each flavour, making up a whole mee chiam kueh.
It's e same when we used to be made to eat fruit at 10pm every night during the news on Channel 8. My mom would peel 4 oranges, and no, we wouldnt eat one orange each. We'd eat 4 quarters, each quarter from a different orange.
The principle behind this was, the family was to share our stuff. If the orange was sour and lousy, each of us would have to take a quarter. If it was sweet and juicy, each of us would also take only one quarter. We share the good and the bad, because we're family.
Family rules. Which leads me to spring chickens and cze chars.
After years of sharing the good and the crap with each family member, it makes the cutting up and sharing of food a very intimate thing to me. It's almost like I should only share food from a common dish with people who are family. In fact, I do feel slightly uncomfortable sharing food with even my closest friends, but of course the comfort level varies. It's almost like sharing food is to me, a sign of the intimacy of the friendship.
So, when it comes to suggesting a place for a gathering, I would often suggest a buffet or a place where I know we'd eat off our own dishes.
Don't get me wrong k, people. Especially e person I ate spring chicken with. I'd b glad to share food in e future. :)
These are juz some thoughts that were triggered by the sight of the 3 pieces of different flavoured mee chiam kueh in the oven toaster on Monday.
Hope they trigger some thoughts in you about how ur family operates too?
This time, it ain't really about appreciation for a certain family member, but more of a reflection on my family's rules. Family rules, in the family therapy context, aint always like about curfews or rules about the TV and the computer.
It's about certain values in the family, or certain routines that has been adapted to by each of the family member. Had dinner on Sunday at Arnold's Fried Chicken at City Plaza. As me and my friend sat down to order, it was suggested that maybe we could order a whole spring chicken and share it. I somehow flinched a little at it, even though I couldn't understand why.
I thought about how I always have this notion that buffets are better for gatherings than cze chars.
I really couldn't understand why, until Monday.
Had an exam at 5pm that day, and I wanted to leave early to go to school to study for that paper. So before I left, mom prepared breakfast for me. Breakfast was some mee chiam kueh that she bought from this stall near my new house. She bought all three flavours: peanut, coconut and tau sar.
If you're from an individualised family, you'd expect me, my mom and my dad to take one flavour each. But no, things don't work that way in my family. My mom promptly cut each mee chiam kueh into 3 pieces, and each of us had to take one piece from each flavour, making up a whole mee chiam kueh.
It's e same when we used to be made to eat fruit at 10pm every night during the news on Channel 8. My mom would peel 4 oranges, and no, we wouldnt eat one orange each. We'd eat 4 quarters, each quarter from a different orange.
The principle behind this was, the family was to share our stuff. If the orange was sour and lousy, each of us would have to take a quarter. If it was sweet and juicy, each of us would also take only one quarter. We share the good and the bad, because we're family.
Family rules. Which leads me to spring chickens and cze chars.
After years of sharing the good and the crap with each family member, it makes the cutting up and sharing of food a very intimate thing to me. It's almost like I should only share food from a common dish with people who are family. In fact, I do feel slightly uncomfortable sharing food with even my closest friends, but of course the comfort level varies. It's almost like sharing food is to me, a sign of the intimacy of the friendship.
So, when it comes to suggesting a place for a gathering, I would often suggest a buffet or a place where I know we'd eat off our own dishes.
Don't get me wrong k, people. Especially e person I ate spring chicken with. I'd b glad to share food in e future. :)
These are juz some thoughts that were triggered by the sight of the 3 pieces of different flavoured mee chiam kueh in the oven toaster on Monday.
Hope they trigger some thoughts in you about how ur family operates too?
hey ren!! great post! :) i haven't noticed till u mentioned it, but my family shares food something like that too!
omg~! and i thought its only me who felt weird sharing with ppl!!!
i think food is a very personal thing and unless we explicitly stated that this is a food sharing session.. most of the time.. i prefer to order my own dish and eat it.
dont know leh.
weird to share food with someone.....
dont like it when ppl ask me to order to share too unless its munchies like fries.
FOOD IS LIKE UNDERWEAR!
IT IS PERSONAL!