Tuna on Toast
When I open a can of tuna, the sound and smell
triggers the cats to dash into the kitchen
thinking it is for them. Well, that’s not good.
The can, now upside down in a white bowl, the familiar
click of the spoon on dish makes them cry louder.
I add non-mayo, mayo into the bowl, smash it,
drop a tablespoon onto rye toast, it looks unappetizing.
I am bored with the taste, eat it anyway,
sometimes without bread, worry about mercury content
convince myself that the food is health.
It does not resemble tuna steaks purchased
at the fish counter, this impoverished
processed cousin is the penultimate emergency lunch
mom would set out along with egg salad,
lettuce, tomato, bread and coffee. Lunch served.
At New York diners I order tuna on rye toast.
The waiter yells, tuna whiskey down,
My Aunt Jean mixes chopped celery and onions,
shocked by combinations of flavors
It’s what your uncle likes, she says proudly.
My family teach me how to make proper
tuna ala panino al tonno on ciabatta
tossed with parsley, olive oil, garlic, capers,
lemon, salt and pepper that tickles my appetite
topped with sliced boiled eggs and green olives.
Zesty, savory, sensazionale flavors blend on the tongue
but like mi famiglia, I revert to the Italiano-Americano
tuna with mayo on toast. Twice I buy an expensive
tonno sott’olio, delizioso except tuna
is supposed to be easy and cheap.
The cats continue to yell. I have to give them a snack
to eat in peace. I promise to treat myself
to real tonno, experiment one more time.
Aggiungi sapore alla vita