This beautiful object is called a Muddler or Mortar and Pestle. Most of the time it can be found in African kitchens all over Africa. Some Africans use it to blend their food, like pepper, rice, banana, and gari. Gari is made from dried cassava and we use the muddle to make flour. My grandmother and mother would grind the gari to make delicious bread, that tastes like corn bread. My muddler was passed down from generation to generation. It is made from olive wood. When my dad was coming to the USA in 1998, he brought one with him. I was living in Liberia with my mom and my grandparents. My dad worked in the USA to send money back home. 11 years later, he came for a month-long visit. It was my first time to really meet him. He returned to the US and 3 years later came again, and then soon after, he got plane tickets for all of us. My mom, two sisters and I came to the United States in 2013. It felt like home. At home, we have a huge muddler that my mom uses to cook Liberian food. My favorite dish is Cassava Leaf soup. It reminds me of my home in Liberia. 

– Sumowo H.

Relationship:  Im/migrant Im/migrant