Talking with Food in My Mouth

We usually arrive around lunch time or late afternoon on our one-day, yearly visit to NY to see my sis-in-law and her family. It's always a scorching hot, but breezy if we're lucky, mid-summer day.

Much to our delight, my adorable SIL makes sure the planned visit centers around important things like spending time with nieces and nephews, getting reacquainted with active kiddos who have grown a foot since last year, close cousins, oftentimes excited pets, and delicious Italian food.

On this visit as we arrived, a substantial Italian lunch fare was being laid out before us on the kitchen table.

There were classic Italian freshly sliced deli hams, rare roast beef, sharp cheeses, roasted peppers, artichokes, good Italian olives, and various condiments. Crusty rolls were stacked waiting to be cut in half or torn apart for sandwiches or dabbing in richly flavored olive oil. Salads waited in vintage Pyrex bowls with big spoons shoved deep in their middles.

We will usually eat for hours, on and off, and happily debate about everything from house cleaning to politics. 

There are stories told about dear family members who have gone before us and of those sitting at the table with us. Hands wave enthusiastically during the conversations to emphasize points or to finalize a crescendo of ideas. Beverages are passed around and poured into ice filled, frosty glasses. We talk and laugh as we eat - there's no shame at this table of seeing a little partially eaten food in the mouth of a great story teller. 

I love the feel and smell of the air of nearby Long Island waterways and the ocean as we sit around the kitchen table with screened doors and windows open. It's salty and misty. Or maybe it's just my romantic interpretation of normal humidity, who knows.

Towards the evening, great java and Italian cookies and other sweets from the local bakery round out the casual meal.

After we arrive back home and start our busy routines - for weeks after the trip I tell anyone who happens to be near me - there's always a soulful comfort in the visit. Always has been. Always will be.