Argentine Family

All Poems, Argentine Family, Emotions, Family, Humor, Stories

Laughter

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Have you ever felt like you were a child again?

Or, maybe a teenager?

For a laugh so unexpected, so strong, you couldn’t catch your breath?

Chest heaving, muscles contracting?

Lungs hungry for oxygen?

Tears running down your cheeks?

Your cousin perusing your photo gallery.

You’ve got more pictures of geese than people.

Do you have names for them?

As he inhales a bucketful of air.

Letting it go in waves.

Sparking cascades of heaving, gasping, cackling.

Back and forth between us.

Pausing only long enough to scroll again.

Still searching for people photos.

Only to find a frame with sixty matzah balls.

Another with a yahrzeit candle.

That’s my mother-in-law.

The absurdity occasioning another round of chortling.

Just when you think it’s passed, all over again.

Because your partner in giggles can’t stop.

You’re bouncing the eruption back and forth.

Like a tennis ball.

Sniffing, coughing, choking.

Doubling over.

Holding chest, belly.

Right on the street.

In front of the Liberty Bell.

Flipping through photos.

Till Bob, ten paces ahead, shoots us a look.

Impatient to move on.

Penitent, we obey.

Working hard to restrain ourselves, settle down.

Stand up straight, walk forward.

Normalize our breathing, reshape our mouths.

But nothing can erase the bond

from cachinnations sounding.

Indelible moments shared by both.

Merriment rebounding.

 

Lynn Benjamin

April. 23, 2024

All Poems, Argentine Family, Emotions, Family, New York, Pleasure, Thank-You, Trips and Places

Gifts

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Why do gifts, especially when unexpected, affect me?

Sending frissons of pleasure up and down my spine?

What are these sensations?

Desire to smile, cry, hug all at once.

Flashes of emotional fireworks seeking escape.

To display connection.

Glee, gratitude for thoughtfulness.

Balm of being remembered.

Cared about.

In this ever-increasing indifferent world.

Who anticipated fancy nuts from Luxembourg?

Chocolate ground by you in Ecuador?

To await me in New York?

Tokens telling me you know who I am.

What would awaken my senses, curiosity.

Transmit delight.

So much so, I leave them undisturbed.

To continue the bliss.

Before I dip in, sample.

Is it possible I feel this intensity more with age?

Having lost parents whose bond was unshakable?

For me, I think that true.

The sense of feeling special is a prize,

whether in the form of gift or time spent.

Like spotting fields of sunflowers,

billowy, buttery, thick, abundant.

 

Lynn Benjamin

April 11, 2024

 

All Poems, Argentine Family, Art/Arts, Family, Farewell, Museums, New York, Trips and Places

I Never Thought

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Ilanit said, I never thought I could get around the world so quickly.

So inexpensively.

As we said our goodbyes.

At the staircase leading to the exit.

For she needed to go.

To finish errands on a rainy morning.

Before an afternoon flight home.

To Montevideo via Brazil.

Having just breezed through cultures and countries.

At the Metropolitan Museum of Art.

Taking us to Africa, Asia, Europe.

Expeditions to Egypt, China, Japan.

To Spain for El Greco, Goya, Velázquez.

The Netherlands for Van Gogh, Rembrandt.

A whirlwind tour to be sure.

Ila in from Uruguay.

The Met kept us warm and dry.

Tender farewell fluttered by.

 

Lynn Benjamin

April 10, 2024

 

All Poems, Argentine Family, Art/Arts, Family, Farewell, Museums, New York, Trips and Places

Ilanit’s Final Day

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It was Ilanit’s final day in Manhattan.

By unfortunate chance, damp and rainy.

The last leg of a month-long trip.

Buenos Aires, Ecuador, Pittsburgh, New York.

She, ticking off places she wanted to see.

Chelsea Market, Central Park, Broadway.

For the next afternoon, the airport.

To return to Montevideo.

To boyfriend, job, apartment.

I felt fortunate to be on her list.

For her choice to join us.

The very day of her flight.

She could have chosen to swap us out

for a sight she didn’t know.

Instead, she opted to follow us

with enthusiasm, gusto.

Off to meet Elias,

accompany him to the Met.

Sashay through halls, art on walls,

escaping the showery wet.

 

Lynn Benjamin

April 10, 2024

All Poems, Argentine Family, Family, Food, Humor, New York, Pleasure, Trips and Places

Where There’s a Will There’s a Way

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Where there’s a will there’s a way, said Uri.

Watching Bob polish off a cannoli or two.

Despite his recent tooth extraction.

Having cautioned he required non-chewy food.

For any meal.

Preferably rice or pasta.

Which Uri obliged in his restaurant picks.

Taking him to Xi’an for lunch.

Authentic Chinese pulled noodles, tofu.

Fish Cheeks for dinner.

Verifiable Thai with rice, soft fish.

But for dessert, Bob pushed for Ferrara’s.

Where he pined for cannolis.

Chocolate covered and plain.

Buying one of each.

Dissolving them on his tongue with fruity tea.

Uri eyed him smiling,

admiring his will

to enjoy Italian goodies

despite the dentist’s drill!

 

Lynn Benjamin

April 9, 2024

 

All Poems, Argentine Family, Family, Food, New York, Pleasure, Trips and Places

How Did I Forget?

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How did I forget?

How much fun Manhattan could be?

Wandering the streets of Soho?

Broom, Lafayette, Canal?

Hopping the C train to the theater district?

Marching to Columbus Circle?

Plunging into Central Park?

Paddling through waves of humanity?

So rhythmic, I float through them.

Without effort.

Horses and buggies, bicyclists, joggers.

Family caravans.

Meeting up with friends, lovers.

Like I, with cousins.

Exiting the park to jump on a D.

Down to Chinatown for Thai dinner.

Then strolling from bakery to bakery.

Picking up sweet treats.

Lafayette Café, Levain, Ferrara’s.

Bundling booty to take back for tea

in the lounge on the 21st floor.

With views of Manhattan at dusk

on the patio right through the door.

 

Lynn Benjamin

April 8, 2024

 

All Poems, Argentine Family, Easter, Family, For Children, Natural Beauty, New York, Seasons, Trips and Places

Central Park

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Central Park erupted into Spring.

Magnolias, cherries, forsythias.

Daffodils, hyacinths, tulips.

Elaborate floral horse drawn carriages.

Rock sitters, picnickers, trash pickers.

Bicyclists, skaters, rowers, walkers.

Lovers, friends, parents, children.

Chatting in every language imaginable.

Singing sparrows, pigeons.

Waiting to pounce on horses’ feeding buckets.

As soon as they lifted heads to chew.

Frolicking squirrels, even sheep.

When two cousins entered the scene.

On a path from Columbus Circle.

Siblings from Buenos Aires.

On holiday in Manhattan.

Having traveled for a month,

each regaled us with a story.

Meeting us in Central Park

to savor its Easter glory.

 

Lynn Benjamin

April 7, 2024

All Poems, Argentine Family, Family, For Children, Mexico, Playa del Carmen, Trips and Places

What Were the Chances?

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What were the chances?

Duolingo would send Uri to Riviera Maya?

The same week we took two grandkids?

Tell me, what were the chances?

Small enough that we likely wouldn’t coincide.

But, we did.

Just long enough to spend an afternoon.

Catching up.

Eating lunch.

Sharing chocolate.

Absorbing Caribbean sun.

Exchanging kisses, hugs.

Lifting kids up onto shoulders.

Long enough to remind us

we shouldn’t leave to chance,

meetings we could arrange

with planning in advance.

 

Lynn Benjamin

February 23, 2024

All Poems, Argentine Family, Family, Memories, Teenage Poetry

Before the Internet

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Before the internet, I sent postcards.

From all around the world.

To people I cared about.

Wanted to stay connected with.

People I missed.

Wanted to share my journey with.

So, when I receive a postcard, I honor it.

Knowing it takes effort, desire to write.

It’s a wish by the writer to touch base.

To send a written message rather than digital.

Yesterday, I received Uri’s.

Saying he thought of Bob and me.

While at an Arab cinema museum.

In Doha, Qatar.

My mind lit up.

Thinking of all the films we watched together.

Both in theaters and on screens at home.

By a crackling fire.

Roger Ebert’s book, reviewing great movies.

Which Uri gave us as a gift.

I suppose they were same moments he thought of.

When he penned the card.

A mysterious psychic bonding

wrought from lines on postcard stock.

A word or two like seeds to birds,

luring memories in a flock.

 

Lynn Benjamin

December 18, 2023

All Poems, Argentine Family, Family, Food

Table Talk

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It was Rimini where I found myself by accident in a Michelin star restaurant.

Recounted Uri, on our last night together.

As we ate dinner.

First, a carrot ginger soup, which Uri thought was squash.

He went on.

I sipped a shot glass of soup. Immediately, I was back to childhood.

To the vitina my mother gave me in bed when I was sick.

Uri asked the chef about the soup.

Discovering the man’s Argentine roots.

Instant cognitive dissonance.

Flavor of his mother’s humble dish in a gourmet eatery.

So, went the story.

Uri comparing it to a scene in Ratatouille.

When the restaurant critic sampled a soup.

Reminding him of his mother’s cooking.

Then, remarking that Philadelphia has no Michelin stars.

Verifying it on his phone.

Pausing to take a breath.

Observing his plate.

What beautiful colors, he said.

Roasted yellow tomato, red peppers, purple eggplants, beans.

Orange arctic char.

On a bed of crispy basil, toasted French baguette slice.

Small bowl of sweet and sour pickles.

Dessert, Belgian chocolate brownies.

Topped with in-house ice cream.

Costa Rican vanilla beans soaked in brandy.

Send the Michelin inspector!

Chez Benjamin deserves a star.

The first home kitchen in Philadelphia

to compete and exceed the bar!

 

Lynn Benjamin

September 21, 2023