‘Hunger has left its mark on me’: a Native woman reflects on her rich but food-scarce life

Angie Morrill as a child, on her mother's lap with her sister, Erin, standing, and as an adult holding her son Leroy. Composite: Courtesy of Dr Angie Morrill

I asked my older sister why we sang the Patty Cake song so often as children: Patty cake, patty cake, baker’s man. Bake me a cake as fast as you can! She replied simply: “Because we were hungry.”

Her answer stayed with me, and I thought about some happy memories: mom making Toll House cookies while The Wizard of Oz played on television. Delivering baked goods to elders and friends in our Native urban community at Christmas; we are enrolled citizens in the Klamath Tribes, whose traditional homelands are in southern Oregon and northern California. Sharing food is a cultural value for Native people. Mom taught us to always offer food and drinks to our guests. It’s also important to have enough food to share.