The Food That Made Me

Kids, in the summer of 2026, daddy fell in love with making bibimbap. It started with only having less than an hour to make dinner before needing to bathe #1.

Here’s how you make it:

1. Make rice in the rice cooker.
2. Stir-fry julienned squash in sesame oil.
3. Stir-fry julienned carrot in sesame oil.
4. Stir-fry bean sprouts in sesame oil.
5. Stir-fry some meat in sesame oil.
6. Blanch spinach in water. Squeeze out excess water and then mix in some sesame oil.

Do you notice a pattern? Everything is cooked with care separately, but they all use sesame oil. Also, gochujang or a spicy paste is left out because we are trying to eat a bit healthier, although I still reach for chili crisp from time to time.

Making bibimbap is like caring for #1 right now. Everything has to be treated with care. #1 can now roll over, but she cries when she is on her tummy, she cries when I roll her back over, and she cries when I pick her up. Oh, the amount of patience that is needed right now to not get frustrated with her. And, she is starting to make peradaytol noises when she is excited or happy. I am learning to distinguish what sounds are cries, complaints, and joy. Holding her is forever changing. She is currently 5 months old and is deemed less breakable. I can rest her against my body now and be assured that her head is not frailing around anymore. And, giving her a bath brings me joy. Well, mommy actually bathes her. I just supervise and dry her off. But watching the joy on her face with water just melts my heart. All to say, I shall remember to treat more of life with care and remember its many blessings.