The ornaments of a home are the friends who frequent it
There is an old adage that states: people who give you their food give you their heart. This certainly applies to my friend Bev who has an open house, towards which many people gravitate.
Last night I was part of the company at Bev's welcoming table where we all heartily consumed a veritable feast. Earlier that day Bev had been to Camber Quay fish market where fresh fish is landed daily, she bought fresh crabs, dog fish (also known as rock) and mackerel. I arrived to find Bev shelling crabs, cooking the dog fish, making a carbonara (incase anyone didn't want fish) and baking several batches of cakes.
Amongst the shells, bubbling pots and baking aromas, people were arriving, Bev's children, her children's friends, her parents, two French students........ Bev's house epitomises home and her kitchen is the hub of the house.
These days people tend to aspire to owning a large house, children no longer share bedrooms, women want large state of the art kitchens, (that they rarely cook in) we want studies and utility rooms and large gardens (that the children rarely play in.) But many of these houses are like show homes, I had a friend who never used her main sitting room, only ever used the microwave in her pristine kitchen and spent most of her time in the den. As Quentin Crisp said 'I like living in one room and have never known what people do with the rooms they are not in.'
Bev's house is large and homely, there is always something cooking in the kitchen, people conversing around one or other of her tables, a roaring fire by winter or chiminea by summer. Her home has a lovely feel to it, a good vibe, big houses should be filled with people, love and laughter that's what makes a house a home and not a mausoleum.
After our delicious meal Bev produced the cakes she had made earlier
We then took our wine out to the garden where Bev has a mini vineyard
Several of us sat and talked late into the night, sharing delicious wine from Bev's wine cellar. I couldn't have wished for a nicer evening had I been sat in a posh restaurant, sharing good food and wine in a friends happy home is a joy and a privilege.
'Home is people. Not a place. If you go back there after the people have gone, then all you can see is what is not there anymore.'
- Robin Hobb
'If ever I go looking for my hearts desire again, I won't look any further than my own backyard. Because if it isn't there, I never really lost it to begin with.'
- I Frank Baum. The wonderful wizard of Oz
Love Donna xxxxxxxx
