One of my favorite French films is Les Saveurs du palais, the English version is Haute Cuisine. The movie is based on the life of Danièle Mazet-Delpeuch, the first-ever female chef of a French president. The trailblazing Malzet-Delpeuch was François Mitterand’s private chef from 1988 to 1990. In addition to culinary expertise, the job required tremendous poise and grit. Even today, an exceedingly small number of female chefs are welcomed to the highest posts of France’s illustrious kitchens. Ten years after leaving this coveted cooking gig, Malzet-Delpeuch set her sights on a new challenge. At age 58, she served a stint in the male-dominated and competitive field of scientific investigation, becoming the head chef for France’s Antarctic research team on Amsterdam Island.
In her memoir, Carnets de Cuisine: Du Perigord a l’Élysee, Mazet-Delpeuch writes about the journey that led her from a small rural farm where she raised four children while teaching herself to cook to her job at the Palais de l’Élysée. However, I’ve been making my way through her lesser-known book, Mes recettes de l’Elysée à l’Antarctique. Part memoir and part cookbook, the text reads like a personal journal kept while living on Amsterdam Island. Mazet-Delpeuch’s humor and eloquence are noteworthy, but her retelling of the work involved in carrying out her role is mind-boggling.
She was stationed (a more descriptive word might be indentured) in one of the most isolated places on earth for 13 months. For much of that time, she was the only woman at the research post. Despite being the oldest person at the base, Mazet-Delpeuch maintained a regimen of 15-hour work days, providing three meals/day to groups ranging in size from 30 to 80, and serving up fare fit for a French president. Most of the men at the facility showed little appreciation for her efforts and a handful provided a steady drizzle of sexist remarks and inappropriate jokes at her expense. A few kindred spirits, the spectacular scenery, and her own devotion to her metier kept her going like the Energizer Bunny.
Obviously, the woman thrived on challenges. This is not to say she didn’t have concerns before her departure. She wondered if she had the physical and mental strength to complete the assignment. Most of her friends and family members questioned her application for the position. At the beginning of the book, she includes a moving poem that contrasts the act of seeking adventure with that of being left behind. The poem’s author is Benoît Vermander, a French Jesuit, sinologist, political scientist, and painter who teaches religious sciences at Fudan University in Shanghai. I was unable to find any references to the poem online. Below is the version from Mazet-Delpeuch’s book alongside my English translation.
À qui demeure
To the one who remains
L’arbre joue des oiseaux,
Les oiseaux joue de l’arbre,
Et ce sont les oiseaux qui les premiers se lassent,
Et l’arbre reste là,
Il espère la crue par où s’en reviendront les oiseaux frémissants.
The tree plays with birds,
The birds play with the tree,
And the birds are the first to grow bored,
And the tree remains there,
It hopes that a flood will return the quivering birds.
Il veille avec son tronc,
Il guette avec ses branches,
Appelle avec ses feuilles.
Quand il est temps enfin de sortir du silence,
De ses fleurs il pardonne, de ses fruits
Il retient la volée infidèle et qui l’aime pourtant.
It stays awake with its trunk,
It looks out with its branches,
Calls with its leaves.
When it’s finally time to break its silence,
With its blossoms it forgives, with its fruits
It retains the disloyal flock and loves it anyway.
Infidele l’oiseau ?
Et qui le sait vraiment ?
Qui sait de sa mémoire et l’âge et le baiser
Et si l’envol n’est pas autre fidélité ?
Il faut ces envolées pour dire l’arbre fidèle,
Et l’immobilité pour bénir un envol.
Is the bird disloyal?
And who really knows?
Who knows of its memory and age and kiss
And if its flight isn’t due to another loyalty?
The flocks are necessary to proclaim the tree loyal,
And immobility is necessary to bless a departure.
L’arbre joue des oiseaux,
Les oiseaux jouent de l’arbre,
Et partir ou rester sont la règle et l’enjeu.
The tree plays with birds,
The birds play with the tree,
And leaving or staying is the rule and the prize.
I’ve left my own familiar and comfortable tree to travel to warmer climes. Whether I manage to post while on the road remains to be seen. But I expect to return to these strenghtening branches soon.
Endnote
Benoît Vermander is the author of several books. You can learn more about his life and see numerous examples of his artwork here.
Neat!
Have you watched also The Taste of Things (French: La Passion de Dodin Bouffant) ? Sounds very good. Based on the novel La vie et la passion de Dodin-Bouffant, gourmet, written by a Swiss author in 1920. I’ll start reading it with one of my French students next week
I did see that movie in the theater. I thought the parts about the food were really good but I didn’t find the story very interesting. I was surprised France submitted it to the Oscars last year. I’ll look for your review of the book.
I just started it with my student. Hilarious and very French.
By the way, thanks I didn’t know this poet, sounds good!
Glad you’re enjoying it. Yes, I’d never heard of him either Emma. A very interesting person.
Antarctica does funny things to people’s minds over long periods of time. The extreme cold, the constant low-level danger, the isolation, the lack of a normal day-night cycle, the weird lighting due to the Sun always being low to the horizon — it all breaks down the sense of reality and can lead to mental fuzziness and abnormal behavior. Some people resort to frequent bouts of drinking to cope with it. Since the staff at most Antarctic stations is overwhelmingly male, it can be an uncomfortable environment for a woman. I and others have used Antarctica as an example of why the idiots who believe humans can colonize Mars (an even more alien and dangerous environment) are delusional. Mazet-Delpeuch’s intensive work schedule may even have kept her sane, by giving her something thoroughly familiar to focus on.
The birds who venture forth from the tree may find new discoveries and adventures, but may also find that they learn to value the familiarity and bounty of the tree all the more. I’m sure even someone as resilient as Mazet-Delpeuch felt some relief upon returning to civilization.
Interesting about the long term effects of Antarctica. Mazet-Delpeuch did seem to go through a low period about 5-6 months into her stay. You’re right! I think the work was very helpful in keeping her spirits up.
I haven’t reached the end of the book but I bet she is very happy to come home while at the same time feeling somewhat out of sorts. After 13 months in such a structured and limiting environment, a new adaptation starts all over again. Kind of like astronauts returning from a long space voyage.
The poem alone made this post worth reading–a wonderful find that deserves multiple visits. I also enjoy your translations; it’s fun to go back and forth.
Mazet-Delpeuch was certainly a remarkable and courageous woman. Do you know why her stint with Mitterand was so brief?
Enjoy your trip to a warmer clime!
I’m glad you took advantage of the French and English side by side Annie.
The chef prior to Mazet-Delpeuch had been there through 5 or 6 presidents but retired in the middle of Mitterand’s mandate. Mitterand knew of Mazet-Delpeuch’s cooking because she ran a restaurant that was located in, and featured cuisine from, the region where he was born.
Mazet-Delpeuch was even less welcome at the Élysée than in Antarctica. I don’t know why she didn’t stay on for Chirac but he probably wanted a return to the classic French chef who could prepare recipes from all over France, giving guests the best of what the country has to offer.
Fine article. And the inclusion of a beautiful Van Gogh work makes it even better.
Thanks, and yes van Gogh’s tree is magnificent. Nothing like art to spruce up a web page.