Empty Space Upon A Clean Plate

I Understand Now, Mommy

"See darling?  Did I answer your question?"

Stella stumbled over her thoughts.  She hadn't expected such detail, and now she was more confused than ever.

"But Mommy, I thought we were chicken saaaalad..."

Alice smiled, sending warmth towards her daughter.   Her precious, her little spoonful of chicken salad that had already been scooped out of Alice - the side dish who sat enticingly on the table.

"We are, my lovely, we are.  You see, we are the best kind of chicken salad.  Healthy chicken salad, good to eat, my sweet!  And, we come from those two - they made us who we are.  We are Chauncey and we are Leonard.  They remain, here, in us!"

Stella pursed her lips, pouting.  "I don't understand!  This is so confusing, Mommy!  I just want to understand!"

"Well, Stella... let's see."  Alice searched for the words to help her daughter understand creation.  She would have to think fast.  "You see, Stella, we didn't just 'appear'.  We were designed.  We were lovingly pieced together by the Providers.  They chose every bit of who were are, and mixed them all together.  It is by their hands that we have this breath of life.  They gave us sweetness, my love, with just a few grapes.  They made us smooth and sultry with our touch of yogurt.  They made us complex by adding walnuts to our mix.  But mostly, we are made up of Chauncey and Leonard."

"What makes them so special, Mommy?"

"Well, baby, Chauncey is the part of us allows us to focus on ourselves.  He was driven by instinct, you see, baby.  He lived, and without understanding how or why, he knew he must continue living.  His life was pretty basic, he didn't think too too much, and his experiences were fairly limited.  He didn't really struggle, he just 'was'.  He existed.  He continued to exist.  So Stella, we were created simply so that we exist.  We must exist.  We are chicken salad, and chicken salad we will be.  Perhaps we will be eaten, perhaps not, but irregardless we will remain chicken salad by part and by parcel.  We exist to remain here, on the table.  We will not go bad, we will not spoil, we will not!  We will remain chicken salad."

"Okaaaay.  I guess that makes sense.  But what about Leonard?"

"Leonard is the part of us that makes us love who we are, my sweets!  I love being chicken salad!  I love the sights and sounds of the table, the clinking and clanking of spoons and forks getting ready for a delightful meal!  It is the Leonard in us that lets us appreciate the life around us, Stella.  If it were not for Leonard, then you and I being here, me in my bowl and you on your plate, we would be petrified.  We would be gasping for breath as Chauncey was, when he was approaching his last moments.  What life would that be for us, dear?  Living in fear?  Leonard has given us the gift of joy, and love!"

"But we're going to go soon, aren't we, Mommy?..."

As she looked down on her daughter on the dinner plate, Alice was filled with love and pride.  Her little one, her star, her Stella, was already so mature.  From such a small spoonful to such great understanding, all in the span of a few short minutes.

"Yes darling.  Remember, the Providers gave Chauncey life, and they took it as well.  That is inevitable.  The Providers cherished Leonard, too.  They cherished him so much that they were willing to put him through the worst shit imaginable, just so that he might enjoy his time with them even more.  The Providers gave Leonard the gift of suffering, and through his suffering he finally comprehended the everlasting heaven the Providers offer."

"I think it's my time, Mommy."

"Offer yourself to them, my love!  Serve yourself!  Enjoy this wonderful fleeting experience we call life!  Live, my love!  Become a beautiful sacrifice!  We are chicken salad!  Embrace your life!  I love you!  I love you eternally, my Stella, my love, my life!  I love you!"

As the fork bit into her, shudders of euphoric pain coursed through Stella's serving size.  In her last moments, rising finally above her mother's bowl, she was filled with thanks.

"I understand now, Mommy.  I love you, too..."

"Goodbye," whispered Alice.  Her time, too, would end soon.