Monday, 24 February 2014

My Personal Inspirational Story - Cook for the Cure with Vikram Vij


              
               
                On September 21, 2013, I attended the Stratford Savory Culinary Festival with my friend Amy to eat food, bond and for me to meet a Canadian Chef, named Vikram Vij, whom is one of my favourite chefs. He is an Indian Chef and owns two restaurants in Vancouver. He would be at the Stratford Festival presenting cooking demonstrations for spectators.
When we arrived in Stratford, we were too late and had missed Vikram’s presentation. Two days later, Amy called me and informed me that she had two tickets to a breast cancer event where 5 Canadian Chefs would be present, including Vikram.  She assured me that tonight I would meet him. The excitement inside me was overwhelming and I rushed home into the shower and was back in the car on my way downtown. I saw Vikram talking to people and began to find my courage to walk towards him and introduce myself. After many deep breaths, I found the courage and inspiration inside myself to seize the moment. I walked up to him and stuck out my hand and began talking to him about not seeing him in Stratford, my background, my love for food, and my personal story of being diagnosed with breast cancer. We instantly hit it off and he encouraged me to participate in the Cook for the Cure and raise $2500 for breast cancer. 


 Days later, he contacted me and we met up for dinner to discuss ways I could be a part of the COOK for the CURE event and be on his team. Participates have the opportunity to cook with one Canadian celebrity chef and compete against other chefs. I felt an overwhelming feeling of gratitude wash over me as I reflected on my situation. Here I am, meeting, conversing, sharing and learning from a Canadian idol of mine about having the opportunity to cook along side of him. How often are we given the chances to experience these moments? How often are able to push ourselves to follow our dreams, listen to our intuitions and push ourselves to discover what we can accomplish if we are determined to succeed. He came to my school and helped me to encourage my students to fundraise. I met my goal days before the event and on December 7, 2013, I was at Fairmount Royal Hotel with sheer gratefulness in my heart and anticipation running through my body. I had done it. I had reached my goal and raised $2500 with the help of my students, friends, family and coworkers. I was now fulfilling my dream to cook alongside of Vikram and having the chance to learn from Canadian chefs, Mark McEwen, Lyn Crawford and Chuck Hughes.


That night I met all kinds of amazing people, had my picture taken, raised money for breast cancer, ate delicious food and had the opportunity to be interviewed by Global and City TV. This was a dream come true for me. I will never forget the wonderful connections that I met and the experiences I walked away with that night. Not to mention, I have become super friends with Vikram and I cherish him very much and admire his humble attitude and warm heart. I am proud of myself for accomplishing a goal and finding the inspiration with myself. Be inspired!

               Here is what Vikram wrote about me on the Food Network’s Blog a month before the Cook for the Cure 2013.

               I am participating in the Cook for Cure Culinary Showdown because I recently met a young lady, named Sara Mody, who was diagnosed with breast cancer at a young age. What is interesting about her story is that she turned down chemotherapy treatment and made the decision to fight her cancer with the healing powers of food. She has used the art of "Auyurveda", which is eating healthy and using spices like turmeric, ginger, garlic, cumin and cloves. These amazing spices are a huge part of my style of cooking and my heritage. Sara has been fighting her cancer with food, mediation, yoga, laughter and positive thinking. She will be   reaching her five year cancer-free mark in February 2014. At present, she is feeling alive, strong,    proud and grateful. Cancer has become a positive part of her life, because it has taught her about herself and how to live; the attributes that are necessary in life to keep strong and remain focused. The experience has become a vital part of what makes Sara, SARA! Sara is a huge fan of Indian cooking, being half Indian herself. It will be a dream come true for us to cook together and showcase our cuisine and culture on December 7th in Toronto for the Cook for the Cure event. It will be especially meaningful for Sara to be a part of this event as a survivor who has used food as her medicine and has joie de vivre attitude in life.”
 
 

 

 

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