On September 16th, 2017, together with our friends and hosts from Bread House – Sofia and other friends from the neighborhood, we gathered to knead bread.
This initiative, part of QuARTal Fest 2017, involved participants between the ages of 9 and 60, with and without disabilities, some with extensive kneading experience and others with less. But it didn’t matter, because in what we did, it was not important. The important thing was whether we could do something together, despite our differences.
To tell you the truth, we got the mixing very well – literally and figuratively. The people mixed and no one was looking whether the one next him was in a wheelchair, blind, retired or a child, we were all equal. We also mixed some wonderful ingredients and got the dough.
We began by introducing what each of us was unique compared to the other. We received many answers, which again were very unusual in themselves – some of us were different because at night they become like Batman and try to make the world a better place to live, others are unique because they are in love with the person next them despite his or her disability or because when we enter the room we simply light it up with our presence and make the day of others nicer, or because, as our youngest participants have said, sometimes we are very lazy. Of course, in order to have bread, it is necessary to add several ingredients. No, it’s not just salt, sugar and sourdough. To our unique breads, we added a bit of laziness and indecision, which played the role of salt, but also defined us as personalities. Of course, it cannot go without many smiles, you understand sugar. To them, we added a lot of tenacity, many questions with their question marks, about how to make the world around us a more inclusive place and accepting differences.
But do you know what? Just these differences have helped us to make unique breads like ourselves.