Today, I decluttered the pantry of five pounds of whole wheat flour, five pounds of rye flour, and an untouched jar of instant yeast. Then I decluttered the freezer of five striploin steaks, a large quantity of active dry yeast in a half-litre Mason jar, and an entire brisket, trimmed and ready for the smoker. The frozen meat was all vacuum-sealed with my FoodSaver.

All of it went to the Local Community Food Centre, a non-profit agency that promotes food security in small towns like Stratford. They have an allotment garden and a greenhouse, they teach people to cook, and they make meals for people whose incomes fall short of their needs. My favourite charity, right up there with the Lung Association.

I was afraid that the Local could not accept donations of foods that were not commercially sealed, but the nice lady in charge of logistics said that the frozen meat is packaged as well as anything from Sobey’s, and the flour (delivered in airtight plastic canisters) will go right into their kitchen, along with the yeast.

So that’s off my conscience. It took me all winter to work my way through Edmund’s five pounds of hamburger, which I had frozen in six-ounce patties, and cooking the brisket would require a heroic effort and a large party of diners — unlikely in the foreseeable future. I haven’t made bread since Edmund died, and it took me till Easter to eat the loaves I had stashed in the fridge freezer.