Day 252, 254 & 272-All Quiet On The Kitchen Front Continues

19th June, After Dinner, Night

Dear Diary,

Back and yay, yay! I can write for a while longer tonight because Mama has given me one of the two oil lamps in the house. Everyone else is outside by the pond chatting with OM, even Baby who invariably falls asleep in no time at all, nestled between Mama's breasts to the sound of all their voices. Mama says it is because he feels secure in the company of his family and so our voices makes the best lullaby in the world for him.

Ah look! The last amber in the stove has just died and the kitchen is even quieter now that the logs have stopped hissing. I can still smell dinner, a most fulfilling affair that left everyone contented because Mama made her famous curry fish head. Another deep breath...and I can feel the cool air on my back and hmmmmmm, The Evening's Bouquet. Oh, oh, oh, here it comes! This sudden surge of happiness I always get at moments like these. I call them my perfect moments, you know, times when you think life is good and nothing can go wrong and everyone loves me and I love everyone and we are all together and the night is just at its best. 

I am so happy I am even happy with you, Pencil. I think you are priceless! Papa made you from a sliver of granite and he took ages sharpening you against the wall. A piece of soft paper is glued around you so that my hand won't be stained when I write and then when I need to sharpen you some more, I just tear the top part of the paper off. Papa is now thinking of a way to encase you in wood. I think Papa is just the smartest man in the world,  after grandpa OM of course, who made many, many things for the house.

Like this tinderbox for instance which he made a long time ago. Although it is already old, rusty and dirty, I still think it is a work of art. And I love playing with what's inside. Just last month, Mama decided that I was responsible enough to make fire on my own and she taught me how to. What she did not know was that I already knew how a year ago. OM taught me and told me that the lesson was his present to me for my 8th birthday. I was not supposed to tell Mama though. Well, at least, I don't have to do it in secret anymore. 

OM made our plate rack too. The plate rack is HUGE and it took all four of us, Papa, Mama, OM and me, two full days just to put it up. So many "Oh my"s were said that O-My is now OM's nickname. OM said we had to make a GIANT plate rack because well, we have so many plates. And despite its size, the rack nearly wasn't big enough to fit our biggest which Mama used only during special occasions. 

But Mama was too clever. She suggested that we placed the dish at an angle with its head touching the ceiling. And it worked! Now, our rack holds all the plates with the biggest fitting snugly into the highest shelf. These days, whenever Mama wants to tell someone "every problem has a solution", she says "when you run out of wall space, use the ceiling".  I think Mama is the BRAIN of the family and that she is the smartest one of all.

I love watching the rack at the end of the day when all the plates are cleaned and neatly stacked and everything looks ...oops! Is that curry stain I see on that 1st plate in the 3rd shelf? Mama is going to give me an earful tomorrow when she sees this. 

I am so sleepy now, Diary, I can hardly open my eyes. I am going to bed but tomorrow, I will tell you the kitchen pieces that I love the most. They are all made by Mama and I am so proud of her. 

Good night, Diary. 

Good night, Kitchen.