Happriya Ever After is not a typical name for a bread business, but then, the story of how it began, and that of each loaf is not typical either.

The original menu of eight loaves of bread tells the story of a single mother’s journey and fight for survival when her life and that of her son were upturned by the covid19 pandemic.

Priya Ganness told Sunday Newsday she was just about to sign on the dotted line for a new job when the health restrictions began in March 2020, leaving her unemployed.

Preschools were also closed and finding a job that would allow her to take her then four-year-old son to work seemed impossible. At that time, Raiden Raphael Harragin had attended school for only two terms but he loved it and was at a loss when he could no longer see his friends and teachers.

So she started baking as a home school activity, teaching him measurements, counting, using timers, and, of course, baking.

“It was two weeks into the lockdown when our store-bought bread finished. I hadn’t baked in ages, but when I checked I had exactly eight cups of flour in the cupboard and a few extra little things.”

She used two cups of flour, two cups of oats to stretch the dough, and added some herbs including rosemary, basil and parsley.

“That loaf was in the oven and the whole place started to smell amazing.

“My little piece of child ate half of a 13-inch loaf. It came out beautifully. He was so proud that he made bread. It was a magical moment for us so we called it Happily Hopeful.”

[caption id="attachment_898954" align="alignnone" width="1024"] Rainbow sprinkled oat bread, Happy on Purpose -[/caption]

About two weeks later, a good friend and farmer, Ruppy Ramlogan, dropped off a huge bundle of celery for them. She put celery in almost everything she cooked, and wondered if she could put it in bread. They tried it, along with some garlic. It too came out delicious and she called it Grateful Garden.

She said Raiden has asthma, so she was very concerned about him contracting covid19, or her bringing it home to him. So they were self-isolating, staying at home, and not allowing anyone into their space. Their only interactions with others had been on the phone, or with friends and family who dropped off things for them at the gates of their home, where they would sanitise the items before bringing them inside.

Since they had not been to a grocery or bakery in a while, all their snacks were finished and they had not had a treat in a while. They wanted something sweet and she figured if there were cinnamon breadsticks, there could be cinnamon bread.

“This one I called Serenity. Raiden was outside playing while I was waiting on the bread to finish. He just came in, sat on my lap and rested his head on my shoulder. It was just the most beautiful moment. We just cuddled and enjoyed the aroma as we waited on that bread.”

It was around Easter when they were eating the cinnamon bread with peanut butter. They decided they should celebrate the occasion and added rainbow sprinkles. And that gave her the idea of p