OPINION:
The packed lunch represents all that is good in this world. It is one of the most powerful symbols of selflessness, love and humanity we have, and must be respected. These probably sound like exaggerated, pretentious claims, but I can totes back them up.
Last week 25-year-old Liza Stian drew criticism online over the intricate lunches she prepares for her husband. Stian spends hours on the meals. She bakes the bread, crafts duck-shaped bao buns and cooks and cuts the meat into heart shapes. Social media hit back at her wholesome gesture, bombarding her with comments like “he’s a grown man make him take care of his own meals”, “divorce him and cook lunch for yourself” and “why not do something worthwhile with your life?”
I couldn’t agree less with these comments. One of the most beautiful things we do as humans is take time out of our lives to prepare food for others. In the case of the packed lunch, it is particularly virtuous as the food is consumed when the maker is not around. You don’t share the meal, it’s prepared for the good of the other person. Stian likely enjoys the creative process and experiences the sweet buzz you get from helping another, but that only makes the gesture more righteous. Delighting in creating things that help others is surely a sign you’re a good person.
Many in academia support my grandiose view of food preppers. Culinary arts therapist at Lesley College Cambridge, Massachusetts, Michal AviShai, believes creating meals is deeply meaningful for both maker and receiver. As he wrote: “Giving to others fills us in so many ways, even more so when it’s cooking because feeding fulfils a survival need, and so our feeling of fulfilment comes not only from the good of the act of giving, but also the fact that we have ‘helped’ in some very primal way. We have given fuel.”