As soon as I found out I was pregnant, I became extremely aware of what I ate. After all, I was building a person, cell by cell! But even after those 9 months, even after I finished breastfeeding my daughter -who had grown gorgeously chubby on my milk- that awareness stayed. No matter how busy I was as a working mother, I made sure I spent quality time with Zilver, eating home-made quality food. Even if she sometimes preferred fast-food and sugary sodas…

Marlies: No chips, no candy, no soft drinks. It must have driven you mad sometimes, growing up with a health nut for a mother!
Zilver: (laughs) It did, actually!

Marlies: I remember you telling me when you were little: “When I leave home, I am going to eat only junk food and take-away pizzas.”
Zilver: Yes, I must have been 7 or 8. But shortly after I said that, during a road trip, I had my first Mc Donalds. I was so excited walking in there, but when I sat down to eat, I realized the food was absolutely terrible!

Marlies: I was so proud of the fact that you hated it! To me, it was a sign that I had done something right, raising you on healthy, mostly organic food. One of the reasons I made you eat all those fresh vegetables and fruit was because ultimately, those give you the most energy. And you were an incredibly energetic child; running around, lifting your friends, long after everybody else had run out of steam.
Zilver: I have actually grown to really appreciate that. When I need an energy boost now, I won’t reach for sugary sodas. As a matter of fact, you have instilled quite a few healthy food habits in me! I’m not as strict as you are about my diet, but I understand that eating organic produce, fish and meat is much better for both my body and the environment. A traditional Dutch meal of steak and potatoes is okay to have occasionally, but not every day.

Marlies: You recently saw ‘What The Health’, an eye-opening documentary that reveals the consequences of meat and dairy consumption for our health and the environment. It had quite an impact on you, didn’t it?
Zilver: First of all, it made me realize just how much you were ahead of the times with your ideas about food. I remember, for example, that I wasn’t allowed to have school milk, because you were wary of dairy.

Marlies: Fifteen years ago, people looked at you like you were crazy if you even dared to suggest that dairy might not be good for you!
Zilver: Exactly! Secondly, I was shocked to find out what the real price of a hamburger is; how much the earth has to suffer to get that hamburger on your plate. It made me feel like I really wanted to make a change, for me and the world!

Marlies: That makes me even more proud! You know that I always believed in being ‘more than a mother’. It is so important for a woman to keep dreaming and growing, especially as a mother. After all, you are your child’s most important role model! To be able to be a mother and more – in my case, to run my own company – I had to keep a very strict schedule. But no matter how busy I was, I always made time to have breakfast and dinner with you. Do you remember that?
Zilver: I do! And I loved being in the kitchen with you, watching you cook, helping you out. I really cherished those moments, and I still do. We both live hectic lives right now, and cooking together is the perfect occasion to catch up with each other, to take a break from all the craziness.

Marlies: In the end, I believe that a beautiful, healthy meal, cooked with care and eaten with the ones we love, is so much more than food for our bodies; it’s a feast for our souls.
Zilver: To many more feasts together! I love you!

Marlies: I love you too!