My object is my great grandma’s wooden spoon. She used this spoon for her deliciously amazing gumbo and macaroni, which was famous in the small town she grew up in, down south in Louisiana. She would make her gumbo and macaroni and sell it in her neighborhood; her father even told her she should open her own restaurant. She started selling to friends and family in her neighborhood and it was a big hit. One day, my great grandmother’s friend group came over, she was making macaroni and biscuits that day. One of her best friends said, “This is so good, what is your secret ingredient?” My great grandmother never said. Years later, my grandma looked through the attic and found my great grandmother’s private cookbook. She started turning the pages, and she found the handwritten recipe for her macaroni. The very last thing that was listed at the end of the page was love. Love was her secret ingredient. Ever since my great grandmother told my grandmother this story, my family carries this spoon with us. At every family event that we have macaroni at, whether that be Christmas or a funeral, that spoon is always there. This food is always made with love, and the spoon is carried with pride from the past. 

– JW

Relationship:  Great-grandchild of im/migrant or more Great-grandchild of im/migrant or more