Tabal embarks on culinary journey, finds joy in baking

CEBU, Philippines —  Cebuana Olympic marathoner Mary Joy Tabal has her own way of staying joyful while coping up with the challenge of our times.

And it’s completely not related to sports.

In her most recent Facebook post, Tabal admitted that this pandemic, just like everybody else, has brought  her life in a roller-coaster ride, forcing her to slow down on a lot of things.

“But I never let fear take over,” wrote Tabal, who made history as the first Filipina in an Olympic marathon event way back in 2016 in Rio de Janiero, Brazil.

“Taking this moment to reflect on my life with so much gratitude for my health and safety. Never been so happy to be this productive given a limited space to move,” she added.

Tabal, who once reigned as the country’s undisputed marathon queen with a record five straight National Milo Marathon titles that earned her trip to the prestigious Paris (2014), Los Angeles (2015), Boston (2016) and Canada (thrice from 2017 to 2019) marathons, then shared her new culinary journey that armed her with hope and positivism in the face of crisis.

“Opening my kitchen (Queen Mary’s Kitchen) a month ago has given me so much joy. Switching from my “home gym” to my “kitchen” then to other stuffs make my day pass by swiftly,” said the 2017 Southeast Asian (SEA) Games gold medallist.

“Passion for sports and passion for baking made me feel so accomplished. I know these are just little things, but these little things have given me happiness,” continued Tabal, who is holed up in her home in Barangay Guba, Cebu City which is still under modified ECQ (enhanced community quarantine).

Since the baking equipment she ordered online has not arrived yet, Tabal said she whips up for now banana muffins that come in plain flavor or with toppings

ranging from cheese to peanuts and choco chips.

“I never thought that I could this be productive especially during this time of crisis. It really makes me feel happy because not only that I love baking, I am also earning while enjoying what I’m doing,” Tabal told The Freeman.

“I realized that even if our actions are limited to a certain place during this pandemic, we can still be positive,” added Tabal.

“We just need to focus on the good, focus on self improvements, focus on the things that you love, the things that make you happy because that’s the only thing we can do now, helping ourselves to live one day at a time,” she ended.