Certain foods often provide comfort; undoubtedly where the phrase “comfort food” comes from. In times of dissociative grief, sometimes food, a basic but fundamental necessity, can provide solace. Though it may seem simple and unlikely, a little can go a long way.
This is undoubtedly true for Howard and Ann, the protagonists of the short story “A Small, Good, Thing” by Raymond Carver, in which their son, a young boy named Scotty, is hit by a car on his 8th birthday. Though he initially seems unaffected by the ordeal, he later lands in an undiagnosed state of unconsciousness, and his frantic parents quickly take him to the hospital to be treated. As Howard and Ann are preoccupied with Scotty’s condition, they are unable to pick up his birthday cake from the bakery, much to the baker’s vexation.
Even as Howard and Ann fret throughout their son’s stay at the hospital, Dr. Francis continues to give them false reassurances. Despite their reluctance to leave Scotty’s side, the couple takes turns going home for the night; both receive confusing calls from a mysterious man, telling them, "There's a cake here that wasn't picked up," or “Have you forgotten about Scotty?” The couple finds themselves both perplexed and agitated by the strange calls, and when the boy dies, Howard and Ann are utterly devastated. When the unknown man calls about Scotty yet again, it feels as though he is mocking Scotty’s death, both exacerbating their grief and infuriating them. Realizing that the mysterious caller is the baker, they set out to confront him.
Furious with the baker, Ann lashes out against the baker for his insensitive phone calls. However, the baker had not been aware of the boy’s accident and is horrified to realize that his actions, begotten out of frustration, had harmed the parents. He apologizes sincerely and offers them food, a small but surprisingly helpful deed. Previously, Howard and Ann had been unable to stomach or concern themselves with food due to how preoccupied they were. Yet when the baker quietly offers them his bread, they take comfort in the small act of service given, wordlessly devouring the food. They quietly hold conversation throughout the night until the sun rises. As their minds are soothed, their bodies can finally relax as well.
“Eating is a small, good thing in a time like this."
To the baker, the bread he offers is both a plea for forgiveness and an attempt to offer comfort. The life of a baker, he explained, was one of toiling exhaustion. Though he enjoyed being able to feed people, working sixteen hours a day took a toll. Thus, when Howard and Ann had failed to pick up the cake, the fruits of his labor, he had been irritated and was curt in his attempts to call them.
In that sense, it could be said that when the baker gives the couple the bread, he is showing them the essence of his vocation. As Howard and Ann eat the bread, the anguish that the baker’s thoughtless actions had caused is healed. The cinnamon rolls and dark loaves of bread that Howard and Ann ate held no special ingredient; yet, they were able to do what the doctor could not: provide comfort.
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A Little History:
Thought to have originated in Northern Europe, the specific region in which the cinnamon roll was invented is unclear, though some believe it to be Sweden. Known as kanelbulle in its native country, there is a clear distinction between the American cinnamon roll and its indigenous counterpart; for one, kanelbulle are not as sweet. After the dessert spread throughout Europe and evolved to become more like the cinnamon rolls we know today, they were brought to the Americas by Swedish and German immigrants in the mid-19th century.
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