A notoriously picky eater, Stryker has never quite been satisfied with the lunch he takes to school. Sandwiches? Stale by noon. Soup? Never hot enough. Pudding? The ice pack that keeps that cool casts a chill on his chips.
So imagine the thrill when I packed exactly right! He came home one day, replete, reporting a perfect lunch. I had melted cheese on a flour tortilla.
Every day, I assemble three lunches. Stryker's takes extra time. I put in cheese with precision (can't be too much or too little), fold the tortilla and microwave for 60 seconds. To insulate, I quickly wrap the tortillas in wax paper, a layer of paper towels, and then foil, nestling the treasure into the appropriate corner of his lunch box. He reports that this keeps them slightly warm, texture just right. I make two--one for Stryker and one to levy for trades or to give to his friend Henry, who likes them as well.
Last night, I asked Stryker what he thinks he'll remember from his childhood, what memories will stand out as definitive?
"The time I had a cold and a fever, and you left me home alone. I was all alone and I felt sick. I'll never forget that horrible feeling. Alone."
I was sort of hoping he'd think of those cheese tortillas.
2 comments:
From Another Mary...
I remember coming home for lunch (we had to, we lived within 6 blocks) and the fried egg sandwich or bologna/cheese sandwich, waiting on the edge of the counter as my brother and I rounded the corner on the way to our places at the table. We'd grab the plate, sit down eat, never said thanks or um, um good, etc, but now thinking about my mom making those lunches and the sweetness of that love are with me forever - Stryker will get it some day!
Or he may not get it at all and write a tell-all book about that time when he was left at home, sick, all alone! But hey, you got 2 more kids to impress! And there's always Jon going for your thigh...again. Life is good.
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