Sans Salt

For about three months now
this kitchen has been
out of salt.

The clerk neglected to order
a new shipment
(he has since been fired)
and the vendor
has ended our contract.

We can't blame them,
while the customer always comes first,
it's not a business
without a reliable demand.

Our cooks have been instructed
to make do without it
and bless them, they've tried,
but business is bad.

Each night,
less customers,
more
- something's not quite right with this-
- take this back -
- I want a refund -
- I need to speak with the manager -

Well, that's me.
What can I tell them? I can't tell you how sorry I am? What's done is done? My apologies?
I see the food, they see the food, and it looks just the same.
But one bite and I too know it's hopeless,
it's nothing like what it used to be,
this kitchen is no longer,
without salt.

People don't eat for nourishment. People eat for flavor.

So, lately,
in an effort to save the legacy
of what was once
a grand kitchen,
I have mastered
a new skill.

I sit beside the stove
and direct my abundant,
lifetime supply of tears
into the pots and pans
until the day
when we are no longer
out of salt.