Wednesday, July 31, 2013

A Writer's Prerogative: A matter of taste


Wednesday Near Boise Idaho

I'm looking at a lush, expansive vegetable garden planted by someone at this campground who has a very green thumb! There is another just as huge out across the nicely mowed grassy yard and down a steep hill. The owners of Country Gardens RV Park invite their guests to shop around in the gardens. This evening I fixed a stir fry with freshly pulled onions, sweet yellow summer squash and zucchini plucked from the vines. I also picked several ears of sweet corn. I ate two small ears raw, but Frank wanted his hot from the microwave.

The bounty from a vegetable garden always impresses me. Running out of veggies to share this summer isn't even remotely possible here. There are melons, squash, corn, tomatoes, peppers, zucchini, onions and carrots. We heard about this place from some RV people from California who make it a point to stop here every time they're near Boise, Idaho. The flowers growing in front of the office look like bushes covered in blooms at first glance. They're hanging pots full of pink and purple petunias! I've never seen them grow so big!

Having written about the fruits of our labors the other day, it occurs to me that tonight vegetables have had their due. Describing what taste buds taste troubles me in my writing. How to describe the delicate flavor of a bright yellow summer squash after it's been chopped and tossed around in a skillet with a little salt, pepper oil, butter and onion? What are those descriptive tasty words? Zippy, tart, tangy, hot, spicy, sour? None of these fit. Moist with just the proper crunch producing a salty, peppery, buttery flavor taken from the skillet's flavorings might be close. But, nothing tastes and translates to the brain the flavors of fresh vegetables like the trusty tongue. Wrap your tongue around a word for it, and the taste just doesn't come through.

Tidbit Offering: Eat your vegetables, write your words, and remember to savor affectionately your own often indescribable tastes and talents.

P.S. Those words I need for taste, I'm certain they're right on the tip of my tongue!

Thanks for reading,
Cheryl

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