You're a What?

The great thing about life is that you are always learning something new. At the beginning of life, you learn how to get attention through different types of wailing in order to be fed, changed, entertained or you just need to be put to bed. These general needs of life never go away. As you get older, how do you learn to get attention? As adults, we make choices so we can develop our skills and achieve our goals as well as our basic needs. This all ends up being linked together and pushes us forward.

One sunny day I stood in the gift shop peering out of the front door window pondering what the day would be like. I caught a glimpse of bobbing heads along the sidewalk and they turned toward the tearoom. I moved closer to the door to see who was coming. It looked to be a family of four, a man, woman, and two children staggered in age. As they slowly came closer it became obvious to me that something was wrong. The boy and girl were very thin and pale with dark circles around their eyes.

I backed away from the window wondering if these people were real? Obviously, they must be real but at the same time, they looked dead with colourless skin. It looked like they had not been fed in weeks. It looked like they never saw sunlight for they had no healthy summer glow. I was about to look again when the doorknob clicked and the door slowly opened. One by one they came in, carefully poking their heads in the parlour doorway. I grabbed some menus and asked them to take a seat. They could choose any table they liked as it was slow that day and I had no reservations. They went straight through to the Roman Garden Room and sat at the second sunniest table. I checked each of them over carefully as I handed out the menus. They were all smiling with sparkling eyes enjoying the murals on the wall.

Did you do the paintings on the walls or did you have someone in to do it? The mother asked, smiling right at me. I quickly noticed that she was in need of some dental care.

My heart ached for whatever illness it was that this family was enduring. I simply answered,Yes, I did the painting.

The Dad asked me if it was supposed to look like stained glass and I confirmed that was the case. Our mural was inspired by Tiffany. His teeth looked okay from what I could see and he appeared healthier than the rest. Just as I was about to leave the table the mother caught my attention and asked:Is your pastry made with shortening?

Yes, I replied and she gave me a big thumbs up and winked.

I excused myself from the table and let them know that I was going to go and plug the kettle in. I then would be back to take their order. They all nodded and started pouring over the menu. Heading to the back room I found myself confused. The children looked barely alive and when they smiled there wasn't any colour in their cheeks. Their sunken eyes haunted me with the darkest of thoughts. I wondered what they could they be dying from? With the kettles nearly boiled I headed back out to take their orders. This time I was met with sour faces. The children were blank and appeared to be waiting for their parent's decision.

All there is, is salad. She said glumly. Her face was contorted with a scrunched nose. Her eyebrows were furrowed and she bared her grey teeth in the direction of her husband. My eyebrows rose at this point. What did they mean by that? There were numerous items on the menu. Many of our customers were impressed with the range of choices. What could this obviously malnourished woman possibly be thinking?

Pardon? Was all I could manage to say.

She shifted in her chair to look at me. All you have is salad. We are Vegans.

Confused, I pardoned myself again. I'm sorry, you're a what? I don't understand.

Painfully she said it again only louder and more pronounced this time. We are Vegans.

Still unsure of my position or what I was supposed to say, her husband finally chimed in, We don't eat meat.

I then began to list all of the items on the menu that didn't have meat in them but was cut off with, or eggs, or cheese. Nothing dairy. Nothing that comes from animals.

Puzzled, I stood there speechless. My mind was racing at a hundred miles an hour. What are they doing here in a tearoom? Tearooms are full of cream, butter, lard, eggs and cheese. We are in Bruce County - if we didn't eat beef or pork the farming industry would be over. The families in this area would be homeless; the unemployment rate would soar not to mention the historical losses! I looked at the kids who were staring down at their hands now. Their pale, translucent skin showed all of their blue veins pressed between their skin and bones. What has happened to this family to make them endure such torture? Can they not see that their children are starving and unhealthy?

My thoughts were interrupted by the sudden shuffle of chairs. We can't eat here. You don't have anything for us. You might consider putting things on your menu that are Vegan-friendly.

My mind started racing again. Vegan-friendly? What is that? Sawdust? What does a Vegan eat? I didn't see them to the door like I usually did with my tearoom guests. Instead, I remained standing in the garden room staring at my menu. It took hours and hours of hard work to put this menu together. Cream soups were made with 2% milk and just a dab of butter to achieve flavour but not heart attacks. The soup was thickened with gluten-free basmati rice for my guests who couldn't have flour. I had three choices of salad, all made with romaine lettuce for those who could not digest the iceberg heads. We made our scones without eggs and used non-hydrogenated margarine and buttermilk. Our bread was homemade with natural ingredients. Everything was made from scratch. Thankfully I didn't have too long to wait before love and support came through the door.

How was it today? Mark said, reaching for a freshly baked chocolate chip cookie. He then turned and looked at me. What happened?

He continued with his routine and retrieved an ivy patterned cup, crossed the kitchen to the fridge and filled his mug with milk. Are you going to tell me? You look like something happened.

My face read like a book. I could feel my emotions rising as my eyes began to puddle up with tears. It wasn't busy today and the only family that came in left because they were Vegans and they didn't like salad. Their kids looked dead! It was horrible!

My husband started laughing, choking slightly on his cookies and milk. He did his best to finish what was in his mouth and regain some control. Are you serious? Aren't they like vegetarians but deprive themselves of everything to do with animals? What were they doing in here? It's a tearoom, what were they expecting?

This helped. So, he knew what a Vegan was and what they didn't eat. Why hadn't I heard of this before? How many more were out there? Could I make something tasty and animal-free other than salad?

If they don't want to eat salad and they've chosen only to eat vegetables - what do I feed them? Everything yummy comes from animals.

My husband finished his cookies and drained his cup. Tofu. They can eat nuts and beans as protein, too.

I remembered seeing tofu in the grocery store way back when I worked in the produce section in Port Elgin. The manager told me that she enjoyed tofu deep-fried with dipping sauce. She also loved a good steak. Although I knew it was bean curd, I didn't realize that it was a vegetarian thing. I guessed it was a Vegan thing as well.

What can you do with it other than deep fry it? I still couldn't get past the fact that people actually chose not to eat food that came from animals. Many other products come from animals such as perfume, hand cream and vaccines.

My husband was growing impatient. He could see my wheels turning but I wasn't saying anything. So, what are you going to do?

I told him that I didn't know yet and that I would have to do some research. I didn't know anything about Vegan diets. I remembered a rule I came up with while deciding on what to put on my menu. If nobody in the house will eat it then it doesn't make the menu. Often we ate the tearoom left over's from the day. Nobody minded that at all especially when it was broccoli and cheese quiche.

Love, don't stress yourself over it. It's a Victorian tearoom so stick to your theme as best you can and serve whatever you want. With a reassuring kiss on the forehead and firm grasp of my shoulders, he said Let's tidy up in here and then I think you need some pond time.

Decanter in hand he headed for the wine cellar. I'll be right back.

Oh, yes, pond time, my favourite part of the day. A relaxing sit by the pond with a nice glass of wine. We loved to toss floating bits of food to the fish and watch them eat. Sometimes they would jump or kiss at the water. I liked to think that it was their way of saying Thank you for feeding me something good to eat. With the day nicely placed on the back burner, I untied my apron and stepped out for some peace and tranquillity.