The lilac show

The lilacs wave to me
as I wash last night’s dirty pans.

I wait for this show to begin every year. Typically,
I barely catch the opening number and the curtain falls
as I’m rushing off to catch the train,
gulping down the scented air on my way to the car.

This year I’m home for the entire act. Still,
I mourn the heady perfumed blossoms
as soon as they swell. I’m standing at the sink
every early morning, lunch, clean up
to take them in, but
they are already on their way out.

For 18 years,
this private, little wave hello
has always been
goodbye.


© 2020 Amy Wolgemuth Bordoni

Walking at twilight

Walking at twilight
under the heavy-laden
branches of late-Spring
Redbud and crabapple
and the Yoshino flowering
cherry tree
I smell from half a block away
and stand nose to lowest
blooming limb
Breathing in and in
Eyes closed
I should be barely a shadow
cloaked in the encroaching
darkness
But delight seeps out every pore
and for this moment
I am lit


© Amy Wolgemuth Bordoni

Last days of high school, 2020

Make an appointment to enter the building
A maximum of 20 students allowed at once
to retrieve personal items
No parents or guests permitted
Enter Door 40 at your time
Wear a face covering
Sanitize your hands upon entry
Hallway locker first, PE locker last 
Maintain at a safe social distance
at least 6 feet from all other individuals
No more than 20 minutes
Exit the building at Door 39
immediately upon retrieving materials
Sanitize hands prior to leaving

If you are a Senior
pull your vehicle up to Door 1
Display a white paper with your name on it
Your cap and gown
diploma cover
medallion
senior t-shirt and
other graduation-related materials
will be placed in your trunk
to minimize contact

+++

Every word here was in a long perfunctory email from the high school principal this week. I cried when I read it. What kind of world has this become where safety has become such a priority that we have to address each other (particularly our children!) without any empathy or emotion? Not one bit of warmth or acknowledgment that this is just plain weird and heartbreaking, especially for the seniors. My cousin Jon is the principal at Vernon Hills High School and made this creative and touching video for his seniors. Kudos, Jon, for being an administrator with a big heart.

For all the high school seniors missing the rite of passage this Spring should hold — the celebrations, excitement and privileges of being top dog — my heart goes out to you.

best-ever banana bread

Since we've been sent into house arrest we seem to end each week or two with over-ripe bananas. And since I have adapted a recipe online to be healthier, which I swear my children don't know I do, I figured I should document how I make this (if only for myself) so as not to forget our version of the best banana bread ever.

Everyone online is proffering up their version of the best banana bread. Especially now that everyone in quarantine is into making banana bread. Perhaps it's because we're all home to see the bananas turn to that perfect leopard-like state. The uneaten stragglers in the bunch aren't turning black and fruit fly-infested and headed for the bin. Or maybe baking in general is just on the rise as we sit at home and stare at the oven wondering what to make next.

In any case, after months of making banana bread (yes, way before we all became bread bakers), I can officially say that this is our best-ever banana bread—healthier, moister, more flexible and more banana-ier than the competition.

Best-ever banana bread
with thanks to Sally's Baking Addiction for the base recipe

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Stir together in a large bowl:
2 cups flour (I use 1 cup unbleached all-purpose, 1/2 cup whole wheat and 1/2 cup almond meal. Totally flexible here - sub gluten-free flours, more whole wheat, whatever)
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon sea salt
1/2 to 1 teaspoon cinnamon (could also introduce some other spices here like ginger, nutmeg, cardamon - I would just go for a 1/4 teaspoon extra so you don't overpower the banana)

Warm on the stove in saucepan until melted:
1/2 cup coconut oil (can also use butter or other light tasting oil, which wouldn't need to be melted of course)

Whisk into the oil (off the heat):
3/4 cup maple syrup (I like Grade B for baking, which has a darker, richer flavor - or you can use coconut sugar, honey or, if you must, brown sugar)
2 eggs
1/3 cup plain yogurt, sour cream or buttermilk (I use whole milk plain yogurt - I do not recommend anything non-fat here)
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Add wet ingredients to dry ingredients and stir until just mixed. Then stir in:
3 mashed over-ripe bananas
handful of chopped walnuts or pecans (optional)
handful of chocolate chips or pieces (optional) (I really like Hu gems for this - they are quite bittersweet and have no refined sugars)
tablespoon of rum (I have not done this, but I have no doubt that it would be an outstanding addition)

Pour into a greased loaf pan and bake for 60-65 minutes until a skewer poked in the center comes out clean or it just looks done. Cool in the pan for 10 minutes and then pop onto a rack. I advise you to let the loaf cool 1-2 hours before attempting to slice, but I never adhere to this advice. An hour is a long time to smell this deliciousness wafting through the house and not do something about it immediately. The loaf won't stick together for that first slice, but it still tastes great.

friday haiku

spoons in ice cream pints
junk TV, feet on table
stay home day fifty