love lends to taste

i have baked many things in the kitchen of my parents' house:
cornbread, lemon chess pie, lemon bars, lemon meringue, meringue with chocolate chips, key lime pie, apple pie, spice cake, pumpkin bread, pumpkin cheesecake, banana nut bread, banana lime bread, and banana pudding especially for dad

now i am commercializing my amateur talents, being taught to whip and froth many things within the span of a six hour shift. and i just don't know if i can do it. physically and mentally, yes. but emotionally... well, don't you know that everything tastes better with love baked into it.
from the notion of making something for someone else; shopping for ingredients; smiling at the imaginings of the receiving party's receiving; preparing it all within the confines of one's kitchen; and presenting the finished product, it is all about love. even if, perhaps, you don't especially care for the person on the other end, you still take care to make it right. love makes everything taste better.

in a world of rapid consumption; in a place known as the paradox of plenty, i now work for pay. it feels cheap and rushed, this ersatz prep. everything comes out of a bucket already measured and stirred, or else baked already and frozen for shipping. i was told several times this past weekend, as i erred and tried to formulate the requisite routine of baking this or that, that i must perform at a faster clip. this i will do as per the formality of retail, but quietly what i do make from scratch will have my signature: my love.