Susan Senator

Family of five, family of five
That’s what gives me all my drive
I hate to cook
Rather write my book
But I’m happy to be alive.

I am in such a good mood. Probably because — well, I don’t want to jinx it so I won’t say it. But things look good.

But also I’m happy because of my family. And mostly because I had a good idea for dinner and everyone ate it! Ah, the power of meat. Max’s girlfriend, who is here pretty regularly, is a vegetarian, so I make her dinner in a separate pan with just the veggies. And I, who am once again on my much beloved-hated Atkins-Fatkins, have to have a separate pot for my low-carb pasta. It is, as my mother would say, a house full of kvetches.

But who cares? I am so used to it by now, veteran balabusta that I am. I can cook for four, five, and twelve. It’s the clean-up I hate. Anyway, it is a joy having Hannah here, too, not only because of her delightful sprite-like self, but also because she makes five at my table and five is what I am used to: Ned, Sue, Nat, Max, Ben.

Oh. There, my spirit plummets suddenly because I am thinking of Natty. On the phone tonight his voice was tiny. He repeated my questions without answering. Very little content. Finally I just felt that maybe what he needed was just to hang on the phone and listen to me talk. Maybe he just wanted to hear my voice. So, that is easy. I just talked and talked, and told him about all the upcoming Social Group events as well as the food I was going to make him when he was here. “Yes,” he said when I told him about the meat sauce and noodles that await him.

Truthfully the way to a man’s heart is through his stomach — and his arteries.