Chocolate Cake

Ingredients:

·         ½   C. Cocoa

·         ½ C. Hot Water

·         2 C. Sugar

·         2 Eggs

·         1 C. Buttermilk

·         1 T. Baking powder

·         2 C. Flour

·         ½ T. Salt

·         1 t. Vanilla

Preparation:

First, dissolve the cocoa in hot water and let cool.  Add the three ingredients: Cream butter, Sugar, and Eggs.

                “Domino!”

– Screamed my uncle who slapped the domino on the table.  He snapped me out of my daze, as I was mesmerized with the combinations of the ingredients going into the preparation of the cake.  Every Thanksgiving we ended with my mom’s famous chocolate cake.  Other activities where going around all over the house, a clutter of competitive but friendly debates going in one of my ears and out the other about who was the best to ever do it in the NBA and NFL.

                My mom walked out of her room going back to the stove to dissolve the soda in the buttermilk, adding flour and milk alternately.  After doing so beating the mixed ingredients well after each added on ingredient.  She sweated bullets over the hot stove, but kept a smile on her face, my mom was just that type of woman I guess.  It wasn’t a reason not to smile this Thanksgiving though, with all the laughter and smiling faces.  Seeing all those new and old faces made everyone feel a certain way I was sure of it.  My uncle had just comeback from the army, which was my highlight of the day because he brought my baby cousin whom I had never seen before.

                The sound of the spoon hitting the bowl to the chocolate, vanilla, and salt snapped me back to the attention of the preparation of the chocolate cake.  After Mama had mixed all the ingredients together, it was time for me to step in.  This would be my first time ever helping cook with anything.  The task I had to do was simple but, I had never been so nervous in my life

                “Pour into greased 8 by 8 cake pan and bake”

 –Mama read the instructions to me aloud to where it caught my uncle’s girlfriend’s attention to make her come over and calm my nerves a little.  She was a short light skinned woman from Atlanta; my uncle always got the best looking females he could find.

“It’s okay; just don’t pour the grease to thick, but make sure you grease the whole pan.”

-She said with her strong Atlanta accent.  I set the oven for 350 degrees as the instructions stated, we were supposed to wait thirty minutes but who knew in thirty minutes this Thanksgiving would go through hell and back.  Mama finally stopped smiling when Sumer, which was her name, came over and included herself in the conversation.  I had never seen such a look in my mom’s eyes I was appalled.

“Why are you here home-wrecker?”

-Said Mama with a rude tone of voice she had only talked in when only really infuriated.  Sumer didn’t respond immediately, a wave of silence came over the crowd in the house this was how intense and strong the tension was in the room.

“Mrs. Guy I just came over to help I didn’t mean any disrespect”

-Sumer added on hesitantly.  The reason Mama called her that was because Sumer was the reason her best friend and my uncle had got a divorce.  Lisa was her name, my mom really wanted them to have children but they split up for and Sumer and my uncle had a baby out of wedlock.

“Well you’ve helped enough…BYE!”

-Mama snapped back at Sumer.  My uncle cut into the conversation once he heard all the commotion from the backyard patio and saw everyone staring at Sumer and Mama.

“Sis don’t you love your nephew?”

-My uncle said.

“Yes, very much but I don’t like this *****.”

-Mama said pointing at Sumer, my ears suddenly went deaf as she said this.  I had never heard Mama curse in my life.   They moved the conversation into Mama’s bed room and everyone slowly went back to what they were doing before Mama erupted.  Everyone except me though, I marched over to my mom’s room and put my ear to the shut door to listen to the conversation carry on.

“If you love your nephew as much as you say you do why do you keep denying the person who brought them into the world.”

-This was Sumer light gentle voice speaking, at that moment I could tell Sumer’s statement had touched Mama’s soul and way of thinking.

“You’re right I just couldn’t accept the fact Lisa left, she was my only best friend and when Mel was born we lost all contact.”

-Mama said with a crack in her voice.  I backed up as I knew this conversation was coming to an end.  They came out the room smiling and with a sense of joy over them.  I stood by the stove with oven mitts on ready to take the cake out and ice it with icing and fudge frosting.  Mama cut the cake into ten pieces and everyone enjoyed their Thanksgiving.  Ever since then Mama and Sumer haven’t had any animosity towards each other