GuiTara

🎵~48

🎶I'll love you forever and a day more ~ Mi feat Waje

Accra, Ghana.

A week later

●Tara Afua Henrie●

I passed Pam the sliced onions she asked for and it wasn't long till I heard the little arcs sizzling in the pan of red oil. Then I got back to my horrid chore of grating the okro for today's lunch--banku and okro stew.

My face scrunched up in disgust, as another squirt of slime coated my hand.

"Stop doing that to your face," Mama chuckled.

"I can't help it. It's just so... green and so slimy like cold baby saliva. Bleh."

"You know," Mama began, pausing from mixing the dough for the banku, "you used to love slime as a baby."

I quickly shot her a look. "Please, don't start, Mama."

"What? It's true," she pressed on, her eyes twinkling with amusement. "In fact, you would smear anything slimy all over yourself. We couldn't leave you alone for two seconds or you'd be covered head to toe in mashed-up food, soap or anything slippery."

Pam, now stirring the onions in the pan, jumped in. "Oh yeah, I remember that." She laughed. "You were such a messy baby, Tara. There was that one time you got into the kitchen and pulled a whole tub of margarine off the counter. By the time we found you, you were practically glowing yellow."

"Ugh, not that story again!" I groaned.

"And that's not the only one," Mama added up. "Remember when Tara figured out how to open the fridge and dumped the entire carton of milk on her head? I still have pictures of that."

"Oh God no." If my hands weren't covered in okro, I would have smacked my forehead.

Pam, on the otherhand, was having the time of her life laughing. "We should frame one of those and hang it up in the living room."

"Don't even think about it," I warned, but that didn't stop them from going down the Messy Baby Tara memory lane.

But as embarrassing as those memories were, it was a welcomed distraction and a wonderful way to keep occupied, like the rest of this trip has been. Since we touched down six days ago, I don’t think all the drama back in Mexico has even crossed my mind and that's because I've kept myself busy with all the things I'd missed when I was away.

"I swear, you were always getting into trouble, Tara," Pam added, stirring the stew. "But hey, at least you're helping now, right?"

"Yeah, but if I ever have to touch okro again after today, it'll be too soon."

Suddenly, a knock echoed from the front door.

"I'll get it." I quickly dashed towards the sink to wash my hands.

"Yeah, anything to get away from all that slime," Pam mocked.

"Shut up." I playfully swatted her with a napkin before exiting the kitchen, walking underneath the archway that served as the partitioning for the dining hall and living room. Mama's laughter echoed behind me as I covered the short distance to the main entrance.