The Smell of Freshly Baked Cookies

A memory that has stuck with me throughout my life is the first time I made chocolate chip cookies with my mother. I was probably about 4 years old the first time my mother let me help her make our family’s delicious chocolate chip cookies. I was only 4 years old, so I was still very short, but luckily our kitchen had a low set counter that was just the right height for me to work on. While my mother did most of the measuring, she did let me dump the ingredients into the mixing bowl and give it a few stirs. We even have pictures of me with my little apron on and cookie dough and flour all over me.

This memory for me has really become a part of who I am in my identity. Throughout my life, I have always been known as the girl who makes the world’s best chocolate chip cookies. I even thought about become a professional chef and baker and went to culinary school for a year to try it out. Cooking and baking, like this memory, will always be a part of my life, but it is not my complete identity. No one memory can completely define someone’s identity. Our collective memories help make up who we are, along with biological components.

Since it has been so long since this memory took place that many of the details of the story are brought in from pictures and my mom and dad’s telling of this memory. I’m sure that when I was younger, I would have really thought I had made that first batch of cookies all by myself and not have focused on the little details like the low counter, apron, and the cookie dough everywhere. I don’t think the memory itself has changed, just the important aspects about that memory that stick out now.

Sarah Hejma
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