My mother was out getting a mani pedi when I realized I’d forgotten to buy her a Mother’s Day gift. I see the card I made when I was nine hanging on the side of the stainless steel fridge, but I know a homemade card will not suffice for a mother who raised her only son on her own. It’s too late to go anywhere as my mom will be home soon. I have to make do with what is already in the house. 

I open the fridge for a handful of grapes, and find a bundle of asparagus and two filets of salmon staring right at me. I searched for a recipe and found a honey glazed salmon video made by a grandma from Louisiana. I had all the ingredients and just enough time to make it happen.

I make a sauce of butter, garlic, lemon juice, and honey inside the pan to bury the salmon. I toss the asparagus in olive oil, salt, and pepper to place into the oven. As the rice cooker beeps, I hear the front door unlock, and in walks my mom, “What mess have you gotten yourself into?” Trying to hide what I’m making, I tell her “It’s none of your concern,” leading her upstairs to her room.

A cloud of sweet but savory steam emerges into the kitchen, and I realize that forgetting to buy a gift was a blessing in disguise. While my mom is out working two jobs to provide for the two of us, I’m in the kitchen doing what I can to support her. 

I set two spots up directly across from each other at our perfectly round dining table and lay the crispy, golden salmon on top of a bed of rice adjacent to the asparagus. My mom walks down the stairs and I apologize for making her wait while filling her glass up with red wine. “Hopefully this will make you feel better,” I say, as we both begin to dig in. My hope was proven true in the next half hour, as we were both delighted not just from the flavor of the food, but that it brought us, mother and son, together.