Daily Rice

 

Americans understand the meaning of wheat more than rice. After all, we eat some form of bread daily. Many know that wheat is grown in faraway places, such as Kansas, Nebraska, and the Dakotas by farmers using heavy machinery, and that it's available at grocery stores, 24/7. For most of us, that's about as far as it goes since we lack a direct connection to agriculture. Not so in Vietnam. Rice is food, but also symbolic of life and culture, even religion. Not just here, but in all of Asia.

Almost every Asian eats some form of rice 3 times per day. When asked about our frequency of rice consumption, I say maybe once or twice a week. Not sure who is more astonished - Americans because of their frequency, or Asians because of our infrequency!

Consumption is only one explanation for the cultural difference. Production is the other. Rice is grown virtually everywhere. During the planting season both men and women are mired in mud above their ankles using primitive tools, including their hands to ensure the next crop. Instant rice is a oxymoron! Paddies are a work of art displayed all across Asia - terraces, filled with water, even on steep hillsides. Can't eat rice w/out thinking of Asia.

By Demand!