Lessons In Cooking

Holding a giant avocado
I tip- toe
through the small cold
kitchen where she
stands stirring black bean soup.
The scent of yucca, platanos, and steak
lingers. I suck in
the thick smell and place
the green fruit next to her.
I say her name:
Tata!
While tugging
on her blue skirt.
"I want to help".
Smiling she hands me a plastic
knife and onion
and tells me
to cut it carefully.
Like a big girl
I walk happily to the dark
wooden table and stab
Mr. Onion.
"Ha, ha ,ha,
I have defeated Oscar
the onion.
Now my castle will be safe"!
Laughing I continue chopping the red skin
into small pieces and suddenly
my eyes catch fire, a thousand needles pierce,
a bee stings.
I drop the knife in pain
and cry to Tata
telling her that
I have been blinded
by the onion's magical powers.