Mother May I?
Gift suggestions during AAPI Month
I finally got to patronize the newly opened Red Hen Bakery and Cafe in Montpelier–they opened up on the first, and every time I walked over to get in, the line was out the door. I tried three times that day. I was lucky enough this week to have a scheduled lunch meeting there. I got the mushroom melt–so good!
“It’s nice to have access to daily bread again,” I said to my companion. They agreed. I have missed being able to buy a fresh baguette whenever I felt like it back when La Brioche was open. The two other downtown bakeries: Manghi’s and Bohemian don’t make them daily (as far as I know). And the bread stock at the coop is not baked onsite, which for some reason matters to me.
One of my readers happened to also be in line and he joked I wasn’t writing enough. It’s a comment I get often because I do not keep a regular posting schedule here (however much I wish to). So here’s a brief post. I saw an Instagram influencer talking about his Korean and Chinese heritage and urged other AAPIs to use their voice and to speak up this May, which is Asian American Pacific Islander Month.
And since this weekend is Mother’s Day, I wanted to give you a short list of some Vermont Asian-ness that you can offer the moms in your life.
I’m not typically a proponent of capitalism. I prefer to give handmade, thoughtful gifts, if at all. But I do enjoy wielding a little bit of influence. So even if you don’t take my suggestions, I’m hoping that it inspires you to support an Asian entrepreneur this May.
Magpie & Tiger
This stationery and home goods shop stocks locally-made crafts as well as imports from Japan, Korea, and other parts of the world. The shopkeeper Elena’s Korean background infuses the shop with a certain sensibility and aesthetic that stands out from other shops in Montpelier. She currently has her mother’s hanboks on display. The name of the shop derives from a Korean folktale. Get an artful card for mom and spring for a gift certificate as well.
Sidework by Sasha Hom
Hom just nabbed the Vermont Book Award this weekend for the 2025 novella, her fiction debut about a Korean adoptee. It touches on motherhood, homelessness, survival and grief. It’s a lyrical short read. Purchase it at your local bookstore or through my Bookshop affiliate link here.
Umamiso
Small batch, handcrafted miso made here in Montpelier. Founder Yoko Tarrant was looking for the special taste of home and of all the Japanese ingredients available in Vermont, the miso was not up to par, so she started making her own. She’ll be at the Capital City Farmer’s Market this Saturday. Otherwise stocked at local specialty shops.
CX Silver Gallery
The Rosner and Crook Collections of Chinese Art doesn’t technically open for viewing until May 15th (with a reception on the 16th), so give yourselves time to plan for a day trip to Brattleboro. This exhibit includes Chinese ink and acrylic work of Uighur artist Aniwar Mamet along with papercuts, portraits, and oils paintings from other artists spanning China’s diverse cultural regions. The gallery is home base for Cai Xi, a Chinese artist working in mixed media. Her work can also be viewed there. Gallery admission is free.
The Farewell (2019)
A special free screening of this movie will take place at The Savoy in Montpelier on Sunday, May 17th at 12:30 to honor AAPI month. Bring Mom to the movies. It’s free but you may have to pony up for concessions. The film by Lulu Wang centers around the terminal illness of the family matriarch—a secret they keep from her as they gather to spend her last days together. RSVP for the free show here.
I am ethnically Lao, and growing up, I didn’t feel Asian the way Asians were depicted on TV or in the movies. I knew that the Chinese, South Indian, and Japanese people depicted were, like me, Asian. But they somehow were not me, nor I them. Luckily, I had an insular cultural community that reinforced my Lao-ness, whatever that was. I had parents, elders, and cousins within my daily sphere that I was culturally connected to. They spoke the same language, ate the same food, and carried similar tragedies. I wasn’t entirely alone.
I’m still continuing to figure it out though, my Lao-ness. At least in this age of the internet, it’s much easier for me to zoom outside of my own experience and understand the greater diaspora: politically, culturally, and socially. And I can feel included among the people and cultures within the broad definition of AAPI, even if in Vermont, that is a mere 2% of the population.