The changing of the seasons is one of Michigan’s charms. With Autumn approaching, beach umbrellas transition to weather shields, parkas and sweaters. Weather patterns provide some rain, some shine and lots of falling leaves. School starts, fans look forward to new sporting events, activities claim related themes, and schedules adopt fresh itineraries. We become aware of the next big things and advertised game changers. The custom that doesn’t seem to change with the seasons, though, is the eating thing and folks embrace it with gusto, breakfast, lunch and dinner.
Lunch is often a social time as well as a break time. Things happen over lunch. Nutrition reboots energy and spirits recharge. Order restores in the personal eater’s universe and at the same time, problems are solved, plans are made and desirable refreshment happens. The following poem was inspired by and is dedicated to one of Royal Oak’s own lead businesswomen, GINA MANGOLD, after we shared a lovely lunch.

ON LUNCH
The relationship fare is the goodwill share
agreeable time to declare love for the uplift of lunch
it’s for the slump, nooning creeping into afternooning
when hunger invades the stomach.
It’s a refreshment of soul, a break in attempts to control
what happens in the world, to ourselves and to others.
Lunchers talk about changing circumstances,
reveals and intersections, road forks and directions
gathering in thoughts and connections
undefined by division of courses, the formula for satisfactory lunching.
A gazetteer isn’t needed, vocabulary isn’t heeded
during the dearly desired cookery of free speech
completing
a full store of nutritious satiation.
Smiles add beauty to conversation
and happiness takes a third seat
to eat the bread and drink the wine of
discovering
the fortuna bright of lunching’s midday light
delighting the utmost extent of contenting.

7th SA (Say About): LUNCHTIME: We can alter and phase like the weather, but we always do lunch as we please.
Dining Lightly,
PATT©2014