My Papa is a quirky, funny, adorably nerdy person who has never lost his fascination and curiosity about anything and everything… which makes complete sense as he was a very accomplished research scientist (chemistry) before he retired. The scientist in him is never off duty and I am forever learning about new things depending on what he is thinking about at the time. His topics of interest tend to be most consistently about astronomy and space exploration but they do range far and wide and have included that age old question of “What factors influence the setting thickness of yogurt?” (for which he ran a whole series of dairy based experiments all around the house and also in the car boot!) Also there was the, “Have I just invented the world’s best pyjamas?” phase which included a pyjama top with numerous, made-to-measure pockets for his glasses, the TV remote control (!), a biro (because who can possibly sleep without one?) and also his mobile phone for in the morning. (For those of you wondering, the pj bottoms not only had a zip but also a drawstring AND a button fastening too.)
However, one of the cutest things about Papa is how much he has in common with Paddington Bear. Like Paddington, he came to this country (England) from somewhere warm, sunny and far away (India rather than deepest, darkest Peru) and had to find his way in a place that was totally new to him. Like Paddington, he is full of love and family means everything to him. He is also always hungry and often thinking about food. If he is AWOL, the best place to look for him is the kitchen as he can frequently be found rummaging for snacks. The key similarity though is that both of them absolutely LOVE marmalade. Papa’s day simply cannot begin without at least two pieces of marmalade toast (which forms part of his set breakfast including porridge loaded with fruit and nuts and washed down with a mug of disturbingly weak tea.) Having watched him enjoy marmalade for many decades now, I recently took to making it myself to gift to him. (Hand-cutting (Seville) orange peel is extremely time-consuming and marmalade-making should come with a warning to cancel all your plans for at least half a day.)
Anyway, going back to the “science”, there is something called “the first law of thermodynamics” which is also known as the law of “conservation of energy” and, in simplest terms, this states that energy cannot be created or destroyed but can only be transferred or changed from one form to another. I do feel that this loosely applies to how I cook as I try and stir my good energy and good wishes into the entire process so that my love really reaches the person when they eat the food. Not sure if my marmalade would be Paddington Bear approved but it is "Papa-ngton" Bear approved for sure. It makes me so happy to think of him starting each day with my homemade marmalade… the citrus-sweet burst no doubt fuelling his brain as it handles his thoughts on astrophysics, yoghurt making and how to get out of his Fort-Knox-level-security pyjama bottoms!
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