Flour, salt, water, oil, and a pinch of cream of tartar in double-boiler combine to make this bready mixture so warm and comforting. It's warm when I knead it on the counter, elastic and forgiving. Crunchy lumps are instantly smoothed when they are swallowed by the ever-moist core. Green or blue? I wish for rubber gloves for only a moment when dark drops of food coloring stain my hands, but like an eraser, this glob absolves all sins. One ball of each oceanic color encourages mixing like whirlpools and waves, they will twist and swirl alone or together, a baptism in beauty.
Our first creations are snakes, of course. Silly snakes and then a cake. But soon enough, we're molding heads with cavernous eyes or beady ones, pointy noses or prominent nostrils. One looks like he might sneeze, his mouth hangs wide open, tongue dangling. It's not sad, but these unique creatures do have a very short life expectancy. Just a few glorious minutes is all it takes for each one to brighten the day. We laugh out loud and then smoosh!
Love the imagery in this slice--the swirl and smoosh, oceans of color and crunch lumps. The four and tarter, salt, water and oil brought the smell of that homemade play dough to memory. Sounds like you sure made fun.
ReplyDeleteGreat writing! I love the eraser bit and the sea imagery.
ReplyDeletePlus, my mom used to make play dough for us, too.