I baked every Sunday evening when I was in high school. I didn't have a car or countless parties to show my face at when the weeks ended, so the kitchen was where I made my own fun. I had graduated from just helping my mother to doing it all without help or advice. I made cookies, cupcakes, and cakes all with Betty Crocker's handy bake mixtures.

When the pre-prepared mixtures became too simple, I leveled up and began scouring the web for recipes. That's around when the simple pleasure of baking became complicated. With the boxes, nearly the only thing that you could possibly mess up was leaving the treats in the oven for too long. With more steps and ingredients, there becomes a naturally larger window for error.

The more we learn and experience, the more we grow as people. Not all encounters will cause us to recall them fondly similar to how each baking adventure may be more of an experiment than a mission achieved.

When life became more complicated and my mental health became less savory, I stopped seeing the sanctuary in baking and my kitchen was just another room. There were always more desserts consumed than wasted ingredients, but the journey ceased to excite me the way it once had. I baked less and less until it was only for the holidays...if that.

I found new ways to spend my time, but the thrill of baking is something I always yearn to return to. There was nothing more rewarding than the glee expressed after my treats were consumed. After all, I wasn't baking because I was hungry and in need of a sugar rush.

I recall the times where a baking adventure led to a dead end and I questioned what the point was, accompanied by frustration, of course. I know now that it's perfectly okay that not everything successfully made it out of the oven. I was able to find my error and learn from it.

Finding a passion that's been lost is like catching a fish with your bare hands; it'll slip away if you use brute force. There's not really a solution here in terms of my lost baking passion. It wouldn't feel right to say, "Keep doing it, and the passion will return."

Life just isn't so linear. Sure, it may return--I believe it will and I will welcome it when it does. For now, I'll let it be. It's important to chase your passion. If something isn't bringing you joy or leading you to your long-term goals, perhaps your passion belongs elsewhere.

Wherever you are, be there completely.