ALL THE TEA IN CHINA

ALL THE TEA IN CHINA(L DOUGLAS ST OURS) ALL THE TEA IN CHINA

A rainy day meant indoor play
for the three of us brothers
absorbed, captivated, and enraptured
in the scattering, organizing, and regimenting
of four hundred wheatback pennies
into pretend soldiers representing clashing armies,
forces we marshaled and maneuvered
across the vast battlefield
that was the concrete floor of our damp cool cellar.

When not devoted to pennies,
we'd play for hours hunched
over a thousand baseball cards,
pretending each was a deliverable piece of mail,
a folding table tucked in the corner
became our make believe post office
where we'd sort cards for our imaginary city
plastering the rough floor with Topps all-stars,
bench warmers and journeymen,
pitchers, catchers, and batters
turning that water bug haven
into a place as magical as Disneyland.

Only two developments could disrupt
and distract and draw us from our make believe world,
mom calling us for a lunch of tomato soup and butter bread
or even better, summoning us as she finished stirring
the ingredients of a homemade about to be baked cake,
we'd shoot like rockets up those stairs,
our eager faces peering over the countertop
careful to avoid her busy elbows
and staying out of the way of her utensil drawer.
After wiping her hands in her apron
she'd give one the spoon, the second the mixer,
and third and luckiest brother got the bowl
each object smeared in delicious raw batter
which we would lick clean.

With mom and my siblings around getting stuck indoors was easy and fun,
when we weren't playing and she wasn't baking,
mom would read us golden book stories
with happy ever after endings
and as soon as she'd finish
I'd ask her how much she loved me
and she'd reply "a bushel and a peck"
and if I misbehaved and she spanked me,
I'd ask through my tears
if her being cross meant she wanted to get rid of me,
she'd retort with a twinkle in her eye
"not for all the tea in China."

by L DOUGLAS ST OURS
April 2010