10 - “Diana”

10 - “Diana”, 2020

I like eating food with my hands - not just sandwiches or fries, but salads without dressing, pieces of cooked vegies when they're not too hot. Anything that's not soup is fair game. Using my fingers makes me feel connected to the food in a basic, satisfying way. I really feel like I'm earning my meal when I pick it up with my hands. It's primal, like going back to a time before forks and spoons when we used our hands for everything. Eating with my hands makes me part of the process - from prepping to serving to enjoying the food. I focus more, on each bite. My hands bring the food full circle, from plate to mouth.

Yet utensils have their place too. Some foods just taste better on a fork, and chopsticks take practice but give you control in lifting bites. Spoons are perfect for soups and sauces. Utensils change my attitude as well - more proper with a fork and knife, more careful using chopsticks. The tool shifts how I feel about the food.

Funny how utensils have basically stayed the same for so long. They've become like rituals built into how we eat. Makes me wonder what's next. Robot utensils that change shape? Food pods you swallow? New stuff will come, but who knows if it'll catch on.

We might soon have pills instead of meals just like in Charlie and the Chocolate Factory and other dystopian future movies. But can we really call that dystopian? Instant complete nutrition in a swallow. Sounds almost utopian in its convenience and equality. No more nutritional disparities between classes and countries - everyone could get their needs met instantly. Yet something would be lost too - the feelings, invaluable moments of memories, the social experience of eating. Taking a literal "food pill" could save time but isolate us. Dystopian or utopian? One thing's for sure - mealtime would never be the same.

No matter what's invented though, hands will always be our original tool. They connect us to our memories, our humanity. While utensils come and go, hands remind us where we came from. Their touch brings people together - sharing food, sharing life. So future utensils, do your thing. But hands will always be the instruments of cooking, bonding, and community. They keep us human.