At Life & Thyme, our business isn’t typically politics. We usually leave that to news sources established expressly for reporting and commenting on those complex topics. Rather, we focus on something far simpler—the inherent joy that culinary culture offers the world. 

But what we already knew, and what became increasingly stark while producing our recent documentary project, The Migrant Kitchen, is that culinary culture IS political. Not solely with respect to immigration—a topic so divisive and polarizing in this election—but in subjects across the ballot, and throughout history. Food has long been employed as a connector, as a foundation of economy in emerging new worlds, as a gesture of goodwill across borders, a mechanism of aid and support among allies, and in darker times, as a weapon of war. We’ve always chosen to use it as a lens.

In a few short weeks we’ll celebrate Thanksgiving, a commemoration exclusive to this great nation—one that has, despite claims to the contrary, been truly great since the day it was established. As tradition would have us do, we will invite one another to share a meal, to raise a glass in honor of that which we are each thankful. This year, that may feel especially difficult for many of us, as a specter of uncertainty looms over the future of our beloved country. 

It may be difficult to imagine what will come next. It’s clear what we cannot do, and that is change the outcome of this election, or reverse what negativity has come of it. But what we can do as a country, and what we will do at Life & Thyme, is continue to offer kindness and hope to our friends, our family, our neighbors––despite where they come from or what they believe. To give voices to those who aren’t heard, and to honor the efforts of every citizen, whether they’re fighting a war or fixing their family dinner. Because that is what makes America great today, just as it has since that first Thanksgiving meal.

At Life & Thyme, our ethos has always been to emphasize the positive, celebrate the efforts of a global community, and lift one another up in the most basic of ways. To show and share love through food is fundamentally human; it is something we have in common with every citizen of every nation.

Food is associated with comfort for a reason. It is our hope that today, we can all share a meal with those close to us, and whether we celebrate the outcome or mourn the results, we observe that only in the cultivation of love can we continue moving forward. 

Eat and be well, friends. 

SF