Long Schooldream Poems

Black Hat

“My Deepest Passion”,  is just three cuisines away
For over forty years, cooking in a restaurant, my forte
I can do an “Ice Carving” of a swan landing in a lake
I can start from scratch and build a five tier Wedding Cake

I’ve used exotic spices, from a hundred different lands
Pick fresh produce from a garden, I’ve never opened cans
I have Saffron flown in from India at $180 a gram
Escargots from Niece, France; where I also order lamb

With whisk in hand; a frying pan, a little wine and roux
I don’t believe there’s a creamy sauce; I don’t know how to do
I love to teach my students the beauty of Culinary Artistry
At Graduation they start their careers and take a part of me

Three cuisines, to master, to become a “Black Hat Chef”
But ill health is telling me I don’t have a lot of time left
From a short order cook to a teacher of the Culinary Art
I Live my dream, a dream that is deep within my  HEART

As Executive Chef of a five star resort for the past eleven years
“My Deepest Passion” has kept me going as my retirement nears
Three more cuisines and I become “Black Hat Chef” number eight
The third in the U.S.A. a life long dream come true; if that should be my Fate

Inspired by Amy Green’s Contest “ My Deepest Passion “
Dedicated to my number One Student  Kenny Potter my Protege