We took tea at Kenwood

We took tea at Kenwood

Five tiers on the cake stand

With the more healthy options

At the bottom

Smoked Salmon with cream cheese

In a Bruschetta finger roll

Cucumber sandwiches

Which used more calories to eat

Than they supplied

Moving up through scones

With fresh clotted cream and

Strawberry jam whichever came first

Is a matter of breeding

She smothers on the cream

I get caught up in a crumble of jam

I am undone

But she always leaves room

For a French fancy and a Belgian chocolate

The waiter has a tremor

Fills out the herringbone waistcoat

Puts the buttons under pressure

Perhaps he ensures

The plates are clean

Before they get to the kitchen

It is a favourite place

A backdrop for floppy-haired

Film romance

Or a dash of historical fiction

Maybe this is...

Nothing is ever the same

When recalled

Expectation is a mother of invention

She laughs

It is always unexpected

When the brakes are released

The movement gaining momentum

Until the waiter turns to jelly

Perhaps I was being unfair

He was less reserved than the table

In the corner beneath the arbour

Where lovers dine

In flagrante

Conducting affairs in public

Is a tricky business

They don’t eat cakes with cream

They are already fat cats

We could hear them purr

Halfway across the fuori casa

Every time I hear the chink

Of a spoon on china

I am transported

To a place in time

Just before the birth of laughter

And smile

What makes a recurring memory?

If it is the cat’s whiskers

Who cares

You can be the cat

Who keeps the cream if you like

I will take the laugh