the
The neighbor’s smaller tomatoes and fresh tomato soup (with shrimp salad)
Well, mama says she is just not good at this. I, on the other hand, could teach her all about it, being a kitty who gets petted and snuggled and fed and brushed and given malt paste for hairballs and most of the bed at night. Their bed.
But papa says that mama is pretty bad at letting someone do something for her or letting someone give her something without wanting to repay it and give something in return.
Let yourself be served, papa says, when mama jumps up to go get something from the kitchen that someone at the table has mentioned he or she would like.
Mama is just too fast.
And the other day, oh, boy, she was darting around like a crazed weasel and carrying a plate of “smashed” potatoes (that even I wanted to eat) and she lost her balance and in the act of trying to save a large ancient pot on our terrace, she went splat on the tiles, falling over the umbrella holder and making a nice fat “bleu” on her leg! Not a pretty sight. She could have asked someone ELSE to serve the potatoes to a guest in a tight corner, right?
Well, I wanted to put in a photo of her leg but she said, Are you out of your mind, Loulou? Just let them imagine a bright purple bump on the shin and several gallons of blood on the terrace.
Haha, just kidding, it barely bled. Plus, mama put the ever-present frozen package of haricots verts on her leg and took arnica pills (homeopathic but they work!!!)and like magic, the thing was much better in the morn.
Well, that was a first. So when her sweet neighbor, Christine, offered several fat Russe tomatoes and three HUMONGOUS (whatever that is) onions, mama said, biting her tongue, Thank you very much, I’d love them, my garden does not have many this year, and the neighbor said immediately DO NOT GIVE ME ANYTHING IN RETURN, OKAY?
So mama didn’t.
But it took all of her will power.
I’m easy with people giving me things. Mice, lizards, toys, malt paste, just toss it my way and I’ll give back by simply existing…haha.
Waiting for lizards. Or geckos. Or anything else…
Simply existing…
Yes, sit on your Mum Loulou, to stop her leaping up to reciprocate kindness. Your Mum is well trained and couldn’t possibly disturb you if you were sleeping on her lap.
Hope her bruise is going and the tomatoes tasted wonderful
Luff
Mungo & Jet
Thank you…she has hardly any bruise now and the tomatoes are GREAT! I sat on her all night.
We don’t have leezards or geckos here. We sure wish we did. We’d be happy to receive one or two.
But I’ll bet you have other critters, no? I’d probably like to have some of THEM! I think living on an island is so exotic.
Hi Lou Lou: I have been reading your blog for a long time and just wanted to tell you how much I love it!!!
Well, thank you so, so much. I wish I had more deep and profound thoughts but every now and then they surface. But I love to write and have fun with it. Merci!!!
Your mom is kind and likes to do things for others, but other people like to serve too, so sometimes she should allow herself to be served. Especially now that she has turned blue and painted the patio blood red. We are glad she is okay, but that had to HURT!
Well, yeah, it did hurt but she played that one down, too. The bag of string beans covered it all up, haha. Thanks to arnica bee-bees and cream she is much better today and it has only been two days! Arnica is magical.
It is so true. We are very good at receiving. Glad your mom wasn’t hurt too bad!
She thinks the bag of frozen beans helped more than anything.