Mexican Food

In London in 1973
For five months
Doing research,
I began to go into
Withdrawal for
Mexican food.
I searched for a
Mexican restaurant
But found none.
Then I looked for
Mexican food
And spices in
English groceries
But found none.
Then one day
I heard of a place,
The Laredo restaurant,
And went there after work,
A waiter appeared and
I asked him if the
Place had real Mexican
Or Mex-Tex food,
He shook his head no.
He was from south Texas
So I took the hint
And left forlorn.
Then I found a
Grocery with tinned
El Paso tortillas,
Wolf brand chili
And chili powder,
Cumino, cayenne and masa.
I got the fixins and
Invited friends to try a
Tex-Mex chili meal
con arroz.
They hated it.
Too spicy for
British palates,
I ate the left-overs
For weeks.
Now I keep hoping
My son Matt will
Make a pot of Texas chili,
With no beans,
And bring it by here
With some tortilla chips.
Meantime I use cayenne
Pepper on anything
That can’t move
Away quick enough
To get away,
And dream of
Tortilla soup,
Chili rellenos,
Flautas,
Pollo Mole,
Salsa,
And all the
Rest.