Making bread with a cause - more than just an experience

May 28, 2020

Maybe it has to be said - we, people, are not that bad. Contrary to popular opinion, the species of Homo Sapiens Sapiens characterizes itself with empathy and an impressive need to bond with others.

In our hearts we are caring creatures that generously pay the infamous “feelings” tax.

And when a business has these qualities we call it “humane”.

The Theatre of Crumbs or The Story of the Bread House

Almost every activity in the Bread House is in the form of a “Theatre of Crumbs”. Every participant is an actor in a play, based on his own life. Using this approach we will tell you the story of one life - that of the Bread House.

Step one: drawing with flour

“Depict yourself, a relationship with a loved one, or whatever the topic of your theatrical plot in the flour will be”

The Bread House is a cause . A place that gathers different people, each of whom is looking for something different - to share, to receive warm emotions, to gain confidence, to learn something new, the opportunities are endless.

People from vulnerable groups, couples, families, teams come to the Bread House to make bread. And every time it turns out that the bread is left a little behind and actually the communication is key … and the emotion of opening up your soul and "heal" yourself or the others.

If we had to depict the Bread House with a simple drawing in the flour we would draw just a few people holding hands”

Step Two: kneading

“What is the salt in your life”

A social enterprise needs financial resources to work. In this case, they come from team buildings or couples / families who want to discover the magic of making bread together and thus provide a resource for the rich palette of activities organized for the disabled, disadvantaged people, in other words - the different ones, we otherwise only think of at Christmas.

“What is the sugar in your life”

The sweetest thing for Milena and the team of the Bread House is when people come back, or tell others about the experience and send their beloved ones to make bread, too. That's how they understand that everything they do is meaningful.

“What is the yeast in your life?”

It is said that yeast is what makes bread "grow". For the Bread House, this motivation is the desire to spread the idea of such a place where everyone can feel better, meet other people and express themselves through bread therapy or just by making bread.

Step three: decorating the bread

“Depict the main symbols of your life on the bread”

The main characters in the history of the Bread House are the visitors, the volunteers and the team, which consists of professional bakers, but also of music creators. During some of the bread therapies, there is music, created by kitchen "instruments" - pots and pans, spoons and forks. No, it's not noisy, this kitchen music is like magic.

To depict the main symbols in the simplest of ways, we draw a few hearts and musical notes - love and music, the main ingredients of happiness.

Last step: telling the story

“Now, tell your whole story about the Theatre of crumbs”

Once upon a time…

There was a girl travelling the world. This girl was interested in many things, but especially in community centers and their different forms in the different countries, as well as in street food in different cultures.

After she visited many, many places she came to these conclusions:

We need places like community centers where we can create things together, communicate and share.
In almost every country traditional street food includes bread.

At first glance, these two conclusions are not related, but for Nadezhda, the founder of the Bread Houses, they sounded in sync. She dreamed of such a place to keep the idea of the community centers, but by making bread.

And why is bread so important? - you must be thinking. Because everyone associates the aroma of freshly baked bread with something dear. With home.

Nadezhda returned to Bulgaria and opened up a small bakery in her grandmother's old home in Gabrovo. That's how it all started.

Then she moved to work in Sofia, where she created the most actively functioning Bread House.

And now...

The Bread House

Free bread therapies are held every week. Some of them are for children with autism spectrum disorders. About them, the team of the Bread House says that during the classes they have a desire to share, which is very difficult in ordinary conditions, and they gain confidence that they can do something as wonderful as bread, on their own.

Other bread therapies are organized for refugees and are often held in a joint group with Bulgarians. This way people discover how much they actually have in common, exchange bread-making techniques, share more about different cultures and help each other learn the language. For a similar project called "We are all made from one dough", which was held in a joint group of children from the refugee community and Bulgarians, the Bread House won the Tulip Foundation Award for Project of the Year. It is interesting that at the end of the project the two groups of children became friends and could understand each other without language barriers.

Blind people are also involved in the activities of the Bread House and make the so-called bread in the dark. They work in pairs with a sighted person who also sees nothing due to the lack of light in the room. During the process, the two people get to know each other, discuss topics close to them and knead their bread.

Another activity of the Bread House is "Solidarity Bread". Every month, volunteers gather to knead and bake bread, which then reaches the needy and poor through the Food, Not War initiative.

The activities are many, fortunately they are constantly becoming more and more - in children's hospitals, in juvenile detention centers, bread therapies for people with disabilities…

What’s next?

The fate of the Bread House is just like that of the visitors - to share. To share its methods, therapies and everything learned with other people around the world who want to develop this activity.

Different "formats" of the Bread House already exist in many places around the world - people from the Netherlands, Latvia, the USA, England and other countries have undergone training in Bulgaria to establish their own inspiring place.

A platform is currently being developed through which everyone can learn online how to conduct bread therapies. The team of the Bread House wants to pass on everything they have learned over the years, with the help of a team of psychologists and art therapy professionals.