The Diary of Anne Ku

24 June 2000 Saturday cloudy, dark, cold

GIVING HOMEMADE THINGS

My cousin, who came to London on a sabbatical in 98-99, reminded me how wonderful it was to give and receive. When she brought her children over the Winter of 1998, she also brought some delicious home-cooked food. When I visited them in North London, I bought a scrabble set for her kids Rose and Daniel. Yesterday I found a piano solo transcription of the theme from the movie The Rose. Won't it be splendid if I could play it for Rose on her 10th birthday in July?

Perhaps this practice of giving and receiving is a woman's thing. As a kid, I remember whenever our neighbours visited, they would always bring their latest cooking sensation. Mrs Hong next-door was Korean - but had perfected her Chinese as well as her Chinese cooking. Another neighbour Mrs Hwang was famous for her Chinese desserts. Seeing that she couldn't compete with the master chefs, my mom ventured into cake decorating. To this end, she became quite superb.

For my friend Alice's birthday, I designed and sewed a cotton summer top. It was one of my better outfits - but my female intuition told me that she didn't wear such things. I made an apron for another friend who loved cooking. These days I enjoy making cuttings of my houseplants, repotting them, and introducing plant care to new homeowners.

But what do you give a jetsetting career woman? That's a tough one.

yesterday

tomorrow