Catalyst Community: Recipes-Erica Sprague

The word “community” is defined as a group of people living in the same place or having a particular interest in common. Catalyst Midland has launched a series titled “Catalyst Community” focusing on different communities — sometimes geographic, sometimes a common interest. 
Erica Sprague presents "Home EricaNomics" on Facebook.
In this week’s Catalyst, we focus on the value of the little traditions in our daily lives.  

Our teacher is Erica Sprague, a science teacher at the junior/senior high school in Beaverton. She just completed her 18th year in education. Erica is a teacher both inside and outside the classroom. She now also has a presence on social media (Facebook) to share home economics ideas. Her goal is to encourage us to practice some of the skills that may be diminishing in our fast moving society.

Article:

I share a lot of recipes online and find so many things that I want to try. Really, I am inundated with recipes on a daily basis and most never make it to my kitchen. However, a recent post about gifting handwritten recipes prompted me to dig out the collection of recipes gifted to me many years ago at my bridal shower. I enjoyed looking at each card’s unique handwriting and thought about how important it still is to pass along these gifts to our future generations. Who knows what the world of digital media will look like 50 years from now!
I would encourage anyone reading this article to sit down and consider what their favorite recipe would be...
I had a moment to reflect on our online way of passing along recipes and my thoughts wandered to my Grandma Evelyn's recipe book/binder that I put together back in college when a family member asked if I wanted all of Grandma's recipes and clippings. As I was flipping through the pages that I haphazardly tried to organize years back, I realized that this WAS Pinterest 40+ years ago. What will happen to all our pins 40 years from now? There is such value in having these items in physical form. They’re irreplaceable. Every so often on the pages, I see my Grandma's handwriting and notes that say "try" or "good"-such simple messages to the future. I had to laugh when I saw an article she clipped that discussed the "scam" that was soft soap and that you could do better to just make your own "soft soap" at home with scraps of used bars (yuk!). 

Regardless of if I ever use all the recipes or not, there wouldn't be that same connection with digital media. I don't envision anyone lovingly scrolling through a pinned page of salmon patty recipes or the perfect cupcake! I would encourage anyone reading this article to sit down and consider what their favorite recipe would be and who might love to receive it. It only takes a moment to write on an index or recipe card and pop it in an envelope. You could make someone's day!

There is such value in having these items in physical form.
I now have my own hodgepodge binder of printed and written recipes in a drawer in the kitchen. I'll be sure to pen in notes and suggestions each time I use one of the recipes too, just for good measure and cooks of the future! My cookbook and my Grandma's may be lost in time, tossed in a box or shoved in an attic someday. But MAYBE, just maybe, someone will uncover the books and see great value in the collection and keep the tradition going.