Last year I wrote about taking a break from packing boxes for my big move to Oregon. I baked a wonderful sour cream coffee cake with cinnamon, ginger cardamom & orange zest thanks to Ruth Stroud’s family recipe learned from her mother, Flora Stroud.

Now, a year later I’m taking a break again. Only this time I’m living in Oregon and taking a break from all the pain & grief of these troubled times.

Baking a cake to share with others is my way of affirming life, & the sweetness of joy shared with others.

I know baking a little coffee cake won’t solve the world’s problems, but it might bring joy & connection to a few people. And who knows what the ripple effect may be? I’ll never know. I just know it brings me joy to bake a cake again and share it with new friends.

What helps you in hard times? What do you love to do? Gardening, walks in Nature, photography, writing, music, art, sewing, talking with friends, a good laugh, reading a good book, watching funny movies, building something, reading to children, enjoying a good meal, hot cocoa on a cold day?

I encourage you to take a break from all your worries and do something you love to do, maybe bake a cake?