Kitchen Space

Oh my gosh, Quasimodo , that sounds like a story that you need to tell. We have all dreamed of being the curator of some obscure library hidden in some obscure location such as a planetarium or a lighthouse. Or a pyramid.

Or a barn. We all have our library, our repository. It is a sacred place within each of us.

I have several cookbooks but I won’t keep them in the kitchen. They pick up all those kitchen odors.

Sometimes I will open the fridge and stare longingly into it. I will take note of the contents then go in to other room to consult my little library of cookbooks.

As for rolling ladders I have given them up. I believe every human should be able to pick a book off their personal shelf without having to climb a ladder. It’s not about going up or down but rather embracing the space one is in.

That is where all the stories are. That is where all the recipes are. That is where all the obvious answers are.

Yes, I am most emphatically over-reacting. Of course, I would rather respond than react. But I am not yet at that clear-minded position. I react and react, hoping that someday my reactions come up with a different result. I am the weirdo bereft of a stabilizing barn.

I am the idiot trying to catch up to the moon. I am the lover with spatula in hand.

I am the guardian of bookstore floors. Sadly, my life is a mop bucket.

If only I realized how lucky I am.

If only I had the time to read and reread all those books.

If only I could make that perfect party salsa.

That is why I always keep hot Hatch Valley green chile in my freezer.

That is why I try to keep love going, no matter the perceived obstacles.

It, after all, is the most important ingredient.

Yes, Quasimodo, I definitely over-reacted. That over-reaction is the humor the story is built around. You did notice that I labeled the story, ‘Humor,’ right? If I reacted very mildly, saying, “I don’t personally care for books on the floor but I don’t mind if other people who run bookstores show their disrespect for books by merchandising them on the floor,” then it just wouldn’t be as funny.