It seemed to me that we all became quieter during those vegan meals.
We let ourselves sink into our thoughts, no longer as concerned with pushing them outside our minds.
She wore simple, gray cotton garments and carried a small duffel bag.
Simply Recipes / Eva Feuchter
Within days, shed quietly folded herself into our suburban American life.
Twice a day, she prayed on a mat shed brought along with her.
She liked taking walks around the neighborhood and chatting with the neighbors.
Simply Recipes / Eva Feuchter
Though my grandparents remained religious, the younger folks had strayed from our early lessons in Buddhism.
Im sure Co Ut wasnt impressed by our secular household, but she never let us feel it.
Instead, when she saw a wrong, she would address it through storytelling.
Their sole mission was to find and feed the hungry in their path.
She was the proof of a holy life.
Simply Recipes / Eva Feuchter
I could tell it made my grandfather happy to have his sister around.
When they later found one another as adults, my grandfatherthe eldest brotherpromised never to leave herhis baby sisteragain.
They were, after all, the last surviving siblings of five.
But the change I remember most was at our dinner table.
As the months went on, the cooking only got more creative.
Some of us may have sneaked away for a hamburger or three.
I enjoyed the simplicity of a vegetable broth, floating with semi-circles of nearly translucent winter melon.
It seemed to me that we all became quieter during those vegan meals.
We let ourselves sink into our thoughts, no longer as concerned with pushing them outside our minds.
My grandmother happily reunited with her jar of fish sauce.
But Co Uts lessons of spirituality stayed with us.
It was a habit shift.
Another, just as satisfying way of seeing the world.
Its a practice undertaken both to honor our ancestors and to welcome prosperity for our family.
A solemn, yet hopeful celebration.
I liked the simplicity of his prayer.
The acknowledgement of legacy, of our own rootedness.
My grandparents never imposed vegan food on us; that wasnt their way.
Sometimes, Id join them.
It felt like I was communing in a tradition not only of religion, but of family.
We silently thanked those who came before us for the life we have now.
I’ve had a few other brushes with veganism in my life.
When I have friends who are vegan, I give a shot to expand my cooking repertoire with them.
While visiting my grandparents during their periods of an chay, I eat the same foods as them.
On those days, Ill reach for the vegetables, the tofu, the seitan.
I call my mom, asking for her recipe for kho chay (braised tofu and mushrooms).
