On the second anniversary of the September 11 attacks, a blogger invited some friends for a drink to commemorate the day. When they reacted as if that were a tacky way to mark a national tragedy, a stranger—the author of this account—told him she would be happy to meet him for a drink after work. Two years later, they married. Two years after that, they decided to have a child, and two years after that, they did. This week, that child turns two.
The author, who writes a food blog, had never connected these events until a recent Saturday night. She lives in a noisy part of New York City, and on that night—the eve of a somber anniversary—the streets were unusually loud, with a trumpet, sirens, and cheering that kept her awake. She notes that she does not have a direct 9/11 story: she did not work downtown, did not know anyone who did, and was working in the Bronx at the time. She recalls feeling stranded and wanting a different path. But she now realizes she does have a 9/11 story, "and it came later, and it is a happy one."
This month also marks the fifth anniversary of her site. She admits she is bad with anniversaries—she never writes cards, as her husband can attest. But one day in July, a reader named Anna left a comment on her everyday chocolate cake recipe saying she had replaced buttermilk with red wine. The author had never heard of this substitution but knew it would distract her until she tried it. Before she could, another reader, Marion, emailed a recipe she had found in an Alsace cookbook for a red wine chocolate cake. From then on, it was only a matter of when, not if, she would make it.
For months, she had tried to decide on a fitting fifth-anniversary recipe for the site—one that pulled a theme together—but always struggled to squeeze large sentiments into tidy places. On Saturday night at 1:30 a.m., it became obvious: the cake had to be this one, "something made better because people like you are here."
The post also lists previous anniversary recipes: one year ago, Linguine with Tomato-Almond Pesto; two years ago, Cheesecake Marbled Brownies; three years ago, Baked Brownie, Spiced Up and Braised Romano Beans; four years ago, Tortilla de Patatas; five years ago, Romaine Pesto and Egg-Stuffed Tomatoes.
Editorial Notes