The Literary Chef on Late Bloomers
Lucindy says, "Looking back, I realize late bloomers carry a toolbox they don't always recognize until they need it."
On my thirtieth birthday, my friend Jean gave me a T-shirt covered with tulips and two words: Late Bloomer. It was the perfect description of my life.
I left college to have children and didn't return until my late thirties, making me ten to fifteen years older than most of my classmates.
At the time, I assumed being fifteen years older than everyone else would put me at a disadvantage, but it didn't. 18-year-olds are reveling in new-found freedoms and often, like Icarus, flying too close to the sun, the older student is motivated to maintain focus so she can graduate and get a job so she can feed her family.
In my fifties I became chef at the Yancey House with having no idea how to run a restaurant. At first, I assumed I was starting from scratch. Then I realized I'd been preparing for that kitchen for thirty years without knowing it.
