She didn’t pretend to have cured anybody’s grief or restored their confidence in an afternoon.

She simply gave them techniques, encouragement, and a reason to try again.

On the way home she said, “I never realized people could be so nervous about a little sugar.”

“Sometimes it’s not really about the sugar,” I said.

She gave me a knowing look.

“No.

I suppose sometimes it isn’t.”

That night I helped her organize her receipts into a folder labeled BAKING WORK.