First Food Memory

(Josie Sayz: I’m currently archiving – that’s probably obvious from the number of old, university pieces that have been cropping up the last couple of weeks. This is no exception. Following on from last week, this flash fiction piece also comes from a ‘Life Writing’ class. As told by two year old me, this is my first food memory.)

I am in some café place. My Mommy says it’s called, ‘McDonalds’. She says that this place is only for unhealthy people, not people like me, so I wonder why I am here.

I’m sat at a table with Jessica (who is my Aunty, but I’m not allowed to call her Aunty. Daddy says it’s because she’s only two years older than me) and my cousin, Jade. I’m glad that I got to sit at the table with them, because I don’t know any of the other big kids. I recognise a couple of them. They’re all Jessica’s friends, here, for her party.

I didn’t want to go. I don’t like crowded places with lots of people. Or loud noises. Mommy said that I didn’t have to go, but Daddy said that if I didn’t I would be being rude. I don’t know what that means exactly, but I know it has something to do with my Nanny and Aunty Tracey. I don’t want to be like them. So here I am.

Bored, from listening to Jessica and Jade talking, I look around for the adults. Behind me, at a table, is my Mommy with my Nanny and Aunty Tracey. I don’t know where Daddy and Grandad are, but I wish that I was with them.

I don’t like Jessica and Jade. The grown-ups think that we should do everything together, because Jade is a year older than me and Jessica is a year older than Jade. They all want me to be just like them. But I don’t want to be. They speak really loudly; I want to cover my ears. And I don’t like their yellow hair, stuck on top of their heads like the tops of pineapples. Mommy tied my hair on the top of my head, but I pulled my bobble out. It looks silly.

Jessica and Jade look at me, knowing that I have not being listening, and start laughing. They sound like that animal at the zoo. Mommy said that it’s called a hyena. I didn’t like it – it was too noisy. I turn back again to look at the grown-ups.

When I turn back, a tall lady hands us all our food. Jessica’s looks icky. She has this thing that looks like a bread roll, but it has chickenpox on the top and inside it there’s a brown circle thing that’s touching something gooey and yellow, which is touching some lettuce. There’s white stuff dripping down it too. She tells me this is a burger. I shut my eyes tight, so that I don’t have to see it. I hate it when foods touch each other.

Then I turn to Jade. She’s eating these things that I have. Mommy says that they are called chips, but really they are just potatoes made into thin rectangles. I know I like potato. But I don’t understand how they make it into tiny rectangles. My potatoes at home look like mushy clouds. Jade dips her chips in this slimy stuff that looks like blood. I squirm away to Jessica’s side, but she’s dipping her chips into brown slimy stuff that reminds me of a mud pie.

I look down at my food, so that I don’t see them. I look at my chips, but I can’t eat them. They’re sprinkled with white stuff. They have the chickenpox too, like Jessica’s burger. Worried that everyone will think I’m strange, because I’m not eating the food that they are, I quickly look around the room. I notice people drinking their drink. That’s one thing that I know should be okay. My drink is called fizzy orange. I’m not sure what the difference is between it and the orange that Mommy and Daddy give me at home, so I drink it.

After taking a sip, I clasped my hands over my mouth. Millions of bouncy balls are bouncing around in my mouth. I want to spit it out, but I know I’m not allowed – that’s naughty. I’m scared. The bouncy balls are trying to escape. Hoping that there is more room for the balls to bounce in my tummy, I swallow. Maybe having bounce balls in my tummy won’t be so bad. But the bouncy balls don’t go down to my tummy. I feel them in the top of my nose. They’re bouncing more now. Squeezing my hands over my nose, I cry.

As Mommy comes over, Jessica and Jade start making that horrible zoo animal laughing noise and are pointing at me. Then Jessica’s friends start laughing too. Mommy takes me to the grown-ups table and makes me sit with her. She tells me off for crying and smacks the back of my hand. Now Nanny and Aunty Tracey are laughing at me too.

The bouncy balls are gone now, but I don’t know where. People keep looking over at me and laughing. I snuggle my head down on my Mommy’s lap and cry myself to sleep.

- Josie -