Long and narrow
Strewn with the most delicate natural looking artificial flowers
Planted in wooden window boxes that matched the table, perfectly
Lined in the middle of the long fourteen-seater table
We sat facing each other, like we did in our boarding school dining hall
This seemed rather strange but welcoming
We could sit anywhere we chose to
The places were set with intricate heavy designed metal cutlery
Many glasses for me? Wine glass, water tumbler and another
This was like a scene in a movie
The cool music blurted out around us
As we were seated on the verandah
There was a fresh wispy breeze waiting on us
Waiting, there were also two uniformed, assigned waiters,
knowledgeable waiters on call
They knew exactly what we needed at any particular time,
experience I thought
Confused I did not know what was happening
I smelt no food or had no idea what was going to be served
To my delight a sea food salad starter was presented
On the most beautiful platter
Just enough to tease us
Then the hostess of the table appeared
“Jollof rice or mashed potato with an ox tail something,” she asked?
I am sure she used “A la Carte” names
But that is what I deduced
As a Ghanaian, Jollof rice is a staple food so
For me Mash with Ox tail it was
The most succulent main course, went down quickly
Of course I had to be ladylike and comport myself
But this meal… so refined but ravishing
We had time to chat between each serving
The next delivery was just special
Called a palate cleanser served in a hard coconut shell
With the hard coconut still intact
A slightly natural ‘slushy’, as my daughter would call it
A pure taste of lime, ginger, a little lemon grass – cold
It had a teaspoon in it and was just enough to do
The job it was sent to do
The interlude was given for us to laugh
Friends now, the drinks made the voices louder than before
Everybody full, we laughed and laughed
The dessert was served, interesting looking
Dotted around the plate like a joke
Different tastes, different calories
Just enough, I guess, we had already been filled
I tasted, a drop of creamy chocolate
A wispy sponge cake, a tiny bouquet of berries, different but
Welcome tastes, there was more, more pinches of food
In my more relaxed setting, I would have
Taken a photograph of all the parts of the delivery
If was exquisite, respectful, tasty and classy
Relaxed and reminiscing about who we are
We asked our waiting waiters on call to crack
the coconuts open, in the pantry, of course
We munched and chewed the sweet, rough coconut
At that point, all finesse was thrown out
It all ended with a sharing of tea or coffee
The aroma of coffee was enough to end the evening
The Table gave me a rare experience
Thank you to our host, the ‘hostess of the table’
and the waiters on call, my acquired companions
I forgot the hidden chef, Thank you
I decided to write this free verse slice when I started off with a list of my dinner experience but chose to write a poem. Could this be because writing a narrative, would have caused me to share contents of the conversations and a lot more about the occasion?
How else would you have shared this experience?
GIFTS 
Leave a Reply