ABOUT THE PROJECT
Hi there!
I’m Adrienne Fung, a current senior at Milton Academy in Milton, Massachusetts. I love all things to do with food, stories, and people.
In this project, I interview seniors aged 60+ and ask them one central question:
What dish has been the most significant/meaningful dish in your life, and why?
I then collect the recipe(s) and any relevant photos, drawing from these seniors’ stories to write a narrative description of the dish. The full compilation is then published here, on this website. Ultimately, I will be turning these recipes and stories into a cookbook, giving back to participants and their families as a way to reignite connections and prompt good conversation.
I’ve tried my best to leave the recipes exactly as each person has described them; as such, many employ loose measurements. Some have none at all. To my interviewees—and certainly many of their generation—cooking was less of an exact science and more of a natural, instinctive process. I hope these recipes, while perhaps frustrating, might bring us a little closer to understanding their approach to making, eating, and appreciating food.
WHY THIS PROJECT? (A LONGER EXPLANATION)
During my freshman year (2021), I began to volunteer at a senior living community in Randolph, MA, chatting with Cantonese residents over Zoom. We talked about likes, dislikes, dreams, memories. We talked about their children and how they’d moved far away.
In my sophomore year, I visited a senior home in Hong Kong for an article I was writing for the South China Morning Post’s teen section. I had an incredibly insightful conversation with a resident who often felt lonely because her children rarely visited, even though they lived in the same city.
And I began to wonder: if we don’t take the time to talk with and learn about our families, about the older generation, how much history will we miss out on? How much culture, how much understanding, how much connection?
To me, food is one of the easiest, most meaningful ways to learn about what makes a person who they are. Everyone needs to eat; food is indelibly present in every single aspect of our lives, even if we treat the preparation and consumption of it offhandedly. So I started this project—to show that we all have something wonderful to share.