Arwa, I always see the work I do as a serious job and do it with care. Do you like how the walls and the ceiling turned out?" I said to the woman as if wanting approval.
"Alek, you've done a masterful job. My old husband was constantly postponing it. Thanks to you, we will be protected from the rain and cold this winter," said the old woman.
I wasn't sure if it was because Arwa was old or if she had been sharp-tongued since she was young. All I knew was that she was a woman who didn't hold back her words.
"Arwa, I can hear what you're saying from here," said the old man. Arwa shrugged as if she didn't care about what you said. I changed the subject so they wouldn't fight again.
"Daneel, I think you're good at cooking meat dishes, otherwise Arwa wouldn't have trusted you to cook." I praised him mischievously and spoke sarcastically.
"Yes, son, I'm good at cooking meat dishes. I used to always prepare the food for my teammates when I was a soldier. I'm experienced in cooking meat dishes, and I'm even known for cooking well in my own circle," he said with a longing expression on his face, lost in the hazy memories of the past, and didn't say much after that. Arwa was tired after walking a long way. He started to rest by the fire. I also started to watch Daneel silently. He threw the clean, pre-washed stones into the embers in the fireplace. Then he started to cut the meat with a knife in a way that would increase the surface area. After the cutting process was finished, he put the ingredients I thought were salt, dried tree leaves, red pepper flakes and thyme together and put them in a clay pot filled with butter that he had preheated.
He mixed the spices he added in the clay pot for a certain period of time. He emptied the bowl covered with spices into the bowl where the meat was and spread it nicely on the meat. He placed the meat covered with spices on the stones heated in the fireplace fire. When he put the meat on the stones, it immediately made a sizzling sound and started to cook. He only realized that I was watching him because he was so engrossed in cooking.
"Alek, I think this is the first time you'll eat meat cooked on a stone. I'm sure you'll love its flavor. Now I'll put some other ingredients next to the roasted fire for us to eat with the meat." The old man said. He took sweet potatoes, red onions, a vegetable that resembles a red carrot, and vegetables that resemble purple eggplants from the kitchen. I had never seen such vegetables in my previous life. He carefully placed the vegetables on the embers of the fire.
"Eating these roasted vegetables with meat is both delicious and nutritious. Also, the juice of the Bulba fruit goes very well with meat. This juice, which is a combination of sour and sweet, gives flavor to the meat when consumed with meat. Can you squeeze the Bulba fruit and extract its juice?" Daneel said.
"Of course, I'd be happy to help you. Although I'd like to help, this is the first time I've heard of Bulba fruit. I don't know how to extract its juice," I said.
"Bulba is a dark green fruit with two fist-sized seeds inside. They are in a woven basket under the counter. Squeeze them with a stone juicer. Do you understand what I mean?" he asked. I nodded to show that I understood. I went to the counter and squeezed the Bulba fruit using the stone juicer. Although the colors of the Bulba fruit did not match, it looked exactly like a pomegranate. Instead of red seeds, it had a yellow jelly-like texture with visible seeds inside. I filled the clay jug with the juice I squeezed. I told him that I could prepare the floor table.
Daneel went to the fireplace and started to rest. He said that he had been outside all day chopping firewood for the winter. So I asked him to rest, and I told him that I would easily handle the rest. He did not sit comfortably by the fire, turning the meat from time to time. I prepared the floor table. I put the clay plates and cups. I put my favorite bread, small white lavash breads, on the table. As far as I know, there is no cutlery in this world. People either ate with wooden spoons or with their hands. This was unacceptable. Basic rules of courtesy could not be dispensed with, no matter what the circumstances.
I asked Daneel to make wooden forks. He made a fork with two prongs. He did the best he could with what we had. I also advised that we all eat from separate plates. I thought of eating at a table instead of a floor table, but I gave up because a floor table was more comfortable. Also, there was no empty space where we could put a table. Every empty space was occupied in this tiny house. Anyway, I put the two-pronged forks and knives on the table. We waited for the meat to cook. I put the cooked meat on a flat clay plate. I also put the vegetables that were cooked in the embers of the fire in a clay pot. I arranged the clay plates nicely on the table. I poured the Bulba fruit juice into clay cups.
"Arwa, get up and let's eat," Daneel said, nudging the old woman with his hand to wake her up. The sleepy old woman opened her eyes. She sat down on the floor table, close to the fire. The old woman was sleepy because she had just woken up. Daneel cut the meat into nice pieces and put them equally on each plate. Anyone who wanted to could choose the vegetables cooked on the grill from a bowl. I put a vegetable that looked like a sweet potato and onions on my plate. I wanted to show our couple how to use a fork and knife before we ate.
"Daneel, Arwa, please, the object you see in my hand is called a fork. It allows us to eat without getting our hands dirty. It is both hygienic and convenient. Where I come from, we used to be careful to use forks and knives. I hope you will be careful too," I said and taught them how to use the fork and knife. We all said a prayer for the gods for dinner in the evening. Then we started to eat. Daneel didn't take my show seriously and was stabbing the fork into the meat like a spear. Arwa, on the other hand, followed my show to the letter. Arwa laughed at Daneel's way of eating.
The man who saw this was a little displeased, but in time he learned to use a fork. Dinner was the best meal I've ever had in my life. No matter how good the food was, Daneel and Arwa accepted me. I missed my home, especially my family. Whaley, damn you, you made me separate from my family. I wish I had spent more time with my family, I wish I had told them I loved them more. Will I ever see them again? The fact that I would never see them again filled me with deep sadness. Before I could understand what had happened, tears started to flow from my eyes.