Laughing and Crying with Julie

If you’re a French foodie, French interior design book junkie and/or, like me, are particularly crazy for French kitchen design, then run—don’t walk—to the nearest theater to catch Julie & Julia.
Just when I thought that Meryl Streep had performed at peak in her latest films, The Devil Wears Prada, Mamma Mia! and Doubt, I was transfixed watching her completely and totally absorb (I hate the word “channel”) the persona and larger-than-life character of Julia Child.


Oh my!


What a charmed life, living in Paris in the 50’s. The dinner parties. The daily trips to the patisserie. Fresh air and fresh food. Lots of free time. Could life be any sweeter? I flashbacked to my days in Miami, where we were also given a short-time assignment because of my husband’s job. The direct parallel to my own life gave me a small lump in my throat as I felt her pain of idleness. Of displacement. Of being in a strange—yet beautiful—land with no friends, no calling, no discernible purpose. We, too, lived in near nirvana-land. We had the boat, the pool, the tennis courts. The dinner parties. Fresh (hot) air and fresh food (fish).


But shy of old friends or even neighbors who might carry on a meaningful conversation, I felt isolated and above all else, lonely. As did Julia.


And then, watching her transformation as she developed and then carried out her Big Idea: to follow her intuition (certainly not just plain dumb luck resulting from her boredom) and attend classes at the Cordon Bleu, the opportunities that followed, the friendships that were nurtured. Finding her “true work.”


I saw a part of Julia of which I was totally unaware. I entered her life as she spoke to me with words and actions that gently pricked my heart. For I saw that all of my struggles in working as an author and as a writer were faced by her. And by Julie Powell, played by the terrific Amy Adams. I clung to every word. Every scene. I know I’ll need to see it at least three of four more times—soon!—to absorb all of its messages completely.


Both Julie and Julia found there true work in passions outside of their day jobs. Both stuck it out. When things didn’t go their way. When time pressures reared their ugly heads. When they faced rejection by the publishers and people whose opinions mattered most to them. When exhaustion and frustration and rejection surrounded their higher callings, they persevered anyway. As anyone who has ever tried to get published knows all too well, this is the normal course of affairs. Death of vision. Working when others are relaxing. Obstacle after obstacle and naysayer after naysayer.


Being true to myself pushed me into a two-year labor of love with the publication of Country French Kitchens. It was an inspired idea. One of my few epiphanies. It was born from frustration by a lack of resources in the marketplace and a desire to help others get the information that I craved. Most people told me that it would never see the light of day. I am not an interior designer. I am not a kitchen designer. I am not French. I am not a classically-trained chef. The odds were certainly against me. I am, above all else, a wife and mom to four. I work as a Financial Advisor by day. I happen to have a passion for art and design and have renovated eight homes along the way. I happen to love writing and painting more than anything else and desire to make a difference in this world. I chose to not give up. I chose to work at this project at the end of every work day—like Julie—and to devote every weekend to it until it was completed.


Like Julie, there were a few times when I dropped the proverbial roast on the floor. Sometimes, when one is juggling too many balls, one of them will fall on one’s foot. But, like Julie and Julia, I knew that I needed to follow my gut. Be true to myself. Find and follow my true work.


I’d love to hear your thoughts on Julie & Julia. Finding more personal life parallels than most, perhaps, it struck too many chords for me to count. Did it likewise do that for you? Let me know: emomrx@yahoo.com.


Bon Appetit!