Anatomy of a Dinner Party

First Course 
On a rainy day, we say: At home, there is soup.
In the evening I went home and had a little consommé.

In shallow bowls with wide lips we serve soup.
Carrot or squash? No one knows. Slightly sweet in the spoon.

Second Course 
This is the lighting we wanted. We look, we love. We love
How we look. The crystal goblets so thin you could bite right through.

I am no longer young the young man says and he laughs.
Every time we laugh in unison the battery of the night recharges.

Main Course 
We have turned off the lights and clutch hands around the table.
Eyes squished tight we send a squeeze around the circle, me to you to her.

If you asked them later about the menu they would say: Bolognese.
But it was not the food for which they came it was the benediction.

Dessert 
Tomorrow there will be a stack of dishes but tonight!
There is a stain the size and shape of Africa on the tablecloth.

The door to the yard is open. Inside, there is a peculiar and precious weather.