Maya thinks that life begins and ends in a cafe. She truly does. Often, when I ask her in the afternoon what she'd like to do today, she pipes excitedly 'Go to a cafe!' I frown and wonder where on earth she got this from. It can't have anything to do with the fact that both her parents are tea and cake addicts (their second date was spent in a cafe in Antigua Guatemala stuffing their faces with cheesecake) and that we often pause for pit-stops for 'the sake of the children'. This was all very well when it was boiling hot, because the cafe's often provided cool respite for sweaty Family Narracott. But it's not hot at all now, it's simply habit!
Maya is very astute. She knows that if we go to a cafe, her parents cannot resist satiating their sweet tooth and we can hardly indulge in cake without giving our children hearty slices too. Even though Maya picked up her love of sitting down with a cup of tea (or chai as we do here) and a piece of cake from her parents, I must confess that I do slightly flinch each time she announces her desire to go to a cafe since this is a pretty extravagant pastime, particularly in a country like India. And the trouble is now that the little lady expects cake. If I suggest a biscuit instead she gives me a look like a wounded deer and I have such a personal weakness for it that I normally relent! I think a greater deal of self-control is required, or else our family will return to the UK with an addiction to doughnuts and prematurely thickening waistlines.
I see her point exactly. I love cafes. I do a lot of my marking in cafes, simply because I adore the atmosphere and all the chat and clinking of teaspoons and background music. I work so much better in that setting. She is so right.
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