Children of the Childs
I have loved Julia Child since I was a little girl. We both had weird voices, a profound love of food, a thirst for knowledge, adventure, and appreciation for the simple things done well. I was a latchkey kid; books and the television were my babysitter while my mom worked to support us. Food TV inspired me to play in the kitchen and make myself interesting meals. I’ll never forget asking my mom to invite friends over for a dinner party and insisting that I had to make Cornish hens, wild rice, and vegetables. What elementary school kid makes those kinds of strange demands? There has been a massive influx of Julia Child content lately, and it makes me appreciate her contributions to the world so much more. It’s even more poignant at this stage of my life. I’ve been so comforted and inspired by each of these content pieces and wanted to be sure to highlight them for you should you need a little pep and pick me up in these dark days.
Being a massive Nora Ephron fan, I was early on the Julie and Julia train. I was food blogging to help keep my brain engaged while working a mindless job, and watching Amy Adams struggle with the same resonated deeply. It’s a wonderfully cheeky film with classic Nora dialogue and details. Besides, what could be better than Meryl Streep playing Julia Child? Turns out, a reunion of David Hyde Pierce and Bebe Neuwirth and the stupendous portrayal by Sarah Lancashire. Because the new HBO Max series is perfection, and highlights so many inspiring parts of her story.
Julia Child came from an upper middle class family in Pasadena. She did everything expected of her, but refused to marry to make someone else happy. She wanted to do more with her life than walk the path society expected of her. She took an assignment abroad in search of adventure with a wish to contribute to something bigger than herself. She met her soulmate and supported him on assignments around the world. A chance trip to Paris ignited something that changed the course of her entire life. She wanted children but wasn’t able to have them, and she was fine because her life was full between her work and the adventures she had with the people she loved. I felt closer to her than ever watching more background on her life and love. It was especially inspiring to see what she went through building a new dream later in life. Watching her loved ones work together to innovate new methods of cooking, and seeing her husband take his turn at supporting her in a time where that was unheard of gave me all the warm fuzzies.
On a flight home to Austin, I finally caught the new Julia documentary, directed by the same team that made the incredible RBG one. The never before seen archival footage and fantastic interviews with modern culinary icons really drove home how many people she inspired. It’s so incredible that something she discovered in her late 40s kept her busy and fulfilled until her death. She revolutionized the way Americans thought about food, redefined what women could do, and her passion for food fed the souls of millions. Watching her fight to find her place in a man’s world is extra impactful as the rights of women are reduced in modern day America.
I listened to her “My Life in France” memoir while driving through Rocky Mountain National Park. I couldn’t stop smiling hearing the stories culled from her correspondence. The laborious process of writing and publishing “Mastering The Art of French Cooking” is a master class in perseverance. She toiled over that book for over 9 years, and the fortitude it took to get it to print is a perfect primer about a labor of love. I’m a sucker for a solid romance, and the love she and Paul had for each other falls directly into the fairy tale category. This article does a really wonderful job summing up my feelings about the Childs.
While Julia is an inspiration for millions of food fans, I think Spoiled Spinsters should dive in and appreciate how full her life was without children. Her love story should provide a model for what it looks like when you don’t settle and wait until you can find your true partner, even if it takes longer than society would expect. When people ask me what I want in a partner, I usually say “someone that makes me laugh, that I can see myself adventuring with, that will be my partner in all things, and help push me for more than even I think I’m capable of, that I can count on to help me build an amazing future.” I didn’t realize that would be so difficult to find, but I can’t imagine settling for anything else. I am heartened listening to the accounts of the Childs love, it sounds like a perfect blueprint to a woman like me.
A chance assignment across the world changed so much for the people at home. I can’t help but hope for a moment like that for myself on this adventure of mine. I check daily for housesits in Paris so I can really soak up the magic of the city, and My Life in France has me chomping on the bit to return and retrace some of her steps. I haven’t been to DC in almost 25 years, and it’s also been high on my wishlist for this adventure of mine. I can’t wait to revisit her kitchen at The Smithsonian and say thank you for everything she’s done.
When Donald Trump was elected, many of us were accused of being hysterical and fatalistic about the direction the country would take. It’s all playing out in real time , and even though we saw it coming, it doesn’t ease the shock of watching the political divide, racism, war on LGBTQI+, fights on masks, vaccinations, gun control, climate change, and now reproductive rights. It’s terrifying and exhausting. The people I know and love are heartbroken, scared, and struggling with protecting their mental health in the midst of this epic dumpster fire around us. I had to stop doom scrolling, and falling down the YouTube rabbit hole of her original cooking show brings me joy and cheer when things were looking mighty dark and I was having trouble getting out of bed.
Even though the Childs couldn’t have children, I like to think they raised several generations. They led by phenomenal example, and we’re so lucky to have them. Even if it is just through the magic of television and dusty old cookbooks. Julia Child gives me inspiration and strength when the going gets tough. I hope she can help you through this dark patch too. If not, there’s always Julia Sugarbaker…
