Loaves of New Year Advice
Holy stinking smokes. I opened up the lid of the Le Creuset the other day and gasped….the best loaf of bread I’ve baked all year! Last Christmas, Will and I tried to make dutch oven bread…lets say it was a bit dense. Nearly a whole year later I’d been thinking about things that seem cozy and lovey in our home and to me fresh baked bread was one of those things! And so the journey began.
You know that I turned to Ina, the queen, first. My bread journey ran from Ina’s Challah bread, to baguette style to serve at our Fall Party , to a loaf from Kinfolk Table, and I think one or two more in between. And on the last day of the year, amidst my reflecting and looking forward, out popped this beauty.
So of course I had to look at it as this beautiful sign ;). I realized that this bread journey actually lined up with a lot of the thoughts and feelings I’d like to carry into the year with me. So! Drum roll please! My lessons from my bread making, and the recipe I used to follow:
Good Things Take Time…Like Multiple Attempts Time: From what I’ve learned watching bread youtube videos and attempting to make it myself…you’re probably not going to get it bakery quality on the first time. I think in life, knowing that sometimes we have to get out there and shuffle around a little bit before we land in that spot we feel we’re working toward is important to keep in mind. Let go of needing something to be perfect and give it a try. It’s not only the important thing that you tried, but its also more likely to get you to your goal.
Each Step in the Process is Beautiful: One might think that if you bite into a loaf and it’s not perfection that the whole thing was a waste of time. But that first loaf that was a bit dense taught me about using an egg wash over top. The second time showed me how much people loved to gather around fresh baked bread. The third reminded me that kneading, sometimes with the tag team of your partner, is vital, and so on. It is in each step that we take along the way that makes us who we are now, and we need each of those steps. So rather than the shiny end product that we might be striving for, let’s see what we’ve become along the way and admire all of that about ourselves.
Slow. Down: Baking bread is patience. It’s not something that you can walk in the kitchen and and 30 minutes later you’re enjoying it with wine and cheese. So while I do think (and in fact feel happiest when) getting out there and doing and trying and creating and going, all of which are amazing and life giving, bread also reminds me that good things take time. Slow down, breathe, enjoy the people around you rather than focusing on that to do list, dance, and yes maybe sit down for a moment too.
Enjoy the Process: On December 31st, most of my day was taken up by this lovely loaf. I made good coffee, I snugged with the dog while it was rising, I think I probably listened to music, I ate lunch and only ate lunch while I was doing it. When we are going after whatever it is we want, from bread, to growing our relationships, to our career goals, etc, pause and enjoy the ride rather than just the end point. I sometimes think (and research supports) that when we make time to take breaks, have a bit more fun, and not only be so hyper-focused on the finish line, we not only are happier, but it has this amazing way of us being pleasantly surprised by what we find when we get there.
It doesn’t have to be perfect for it to be good: This is one of the BIGGEST lessons I am so grateful to have learned and live by while facilitating at Wayfair, and my loaves hold up to this. As a training and development facilitator, there is a lot of pressure to feel like you did a perfect training. Thanks to the lovely advice and work of Dr. Carol Dweck, I’ve got some tough news…we probably are never going to get it perfect…because we always have the opportunity to learn and grow! So instead of focusing on all of those little things that didn’t go right, let’s point out the things that went well that we can bring into the next time we do something. And let’s find that thing that didn’t go so right and find out why, how can we change it the next time. It’s not about shame or the fact it didn’t go right, it’s about positive learning. Again, bread, relationships, work… having the confidence and peace that it’s not going to be sterling silver all the time, and that actually means you’re doing a great job (just remember to keep learning!) I think that when we focus too much on perfection like a lot of our culture does, it gets more in the way of our happiness, and our ability to learn too.
I hope my year will be filled with that perfect balance of doing, creating, and making things happen, while staying grounded in my values and what really matters. Whatever that is for you, I hope all the same.
If you would like to bake your own bread, I followed Chef Billy Parisi’s video instructions, and included the ingredients I used below:
