Bowlfuls of love: how a new grandma is tapping into an old tradition

When Wai-Ling Lennon's daughter was in labour with her first grandchild, Wai-Ling was hard at work in her kitchen, cooking through the night.

"I was cooking chicken and ginger soup for her so that, as soon as the sun comes out, I can bring it over," says Wai-Ling.

In the morning, Wai-Ling had a brand new grandson, Yassin, and a new project: feeding her daughter, Kathryn.

Soup has been on in Wai-Ling's Edmonton home since that night three weeks ago.  The new grandmother has been hard at work, sourcing ingredients like fish maw and dragon eye fruit (longan), to make traditional Chinese soups tailored to the needs of Kathryn's postpartum body. 

"That is like the Chinese way to look at the body, the yin and yang, the balance," explains Wai-Ling. She's been using a lot of ginger and what she calls "warming foods" that bring positive energy and help with circulation.

Sitting the month

In Chinese culture, there is a tradition called "sitting the month" where new moms are supposed to stay home for a full month after birth. They rest to regain their strength, and someone else is supposed to feed them to help with that process. 

So, as soon as one pot of soup is finished, Wai-Ling brings a new pot over to her daughter's house, full of nourishing ingredients, made from recipes handed down through generations.

"I think that connection is really meaningful," says Kathryn. "Knowing that some of these are recipes that people have been eating forever."

Wai-Ling has had to do a lot of work to find these recipes, turning to friends and pouring through cookbooks. She's had to do that kind of research because when Wai-Ling gave birth to Kathryn, her experience was very different.

"I almost died," recalls Wai-Ling.

Kathryn was born premature and Wai-Ling lost a lot of blood. It was days before she could even see her newborn baby, much less breastfeed.

Her family was in Hong Kong and couldn't come to care for Wai-Ling and baby Kathryn, and the family was new to Edmonton so didn't have many friends in the community yet.

"It definitely makes me feel sad that she was kind of alone when she went through this big life transition … and like physically and mentally, really tough experience," says Kathryn. "I have a lot of respect for her for being so strong and going through that."

"I'm just grateful that I'm a grandma," says Wai-Ling, who doesn't dwell on the past. She describes whispering 'I love you' each time she slices a vegetable to put in one of her soups for Kathryn.

Kathryn says she can taste the love. 

Originally aired in March, 2021