I got a pacakage from my mom after she died.
It was a project she had commissioned that was delayed in the making and never got to me when it should have – while she could have known about it.
Months after her funeral, I received a curious cardboard box – oblong in shape. My dad brought it when he came over one day, telling me that someone had dropped it off at the house. He had no idea what it was.
I opened the box on the front porch – right where the sign would eventually go.
Bending back the layers of cardboard and peeling away the bubble wrap – we peeked in.
Gold Street Cafe.
It was a sign for our front porch, from Mom.
Sometime during the years of birthday, holiday, and sacramental celebrations, family and neighborly gatherings and numberless coffee chats, the forward extension of our home and familial life became The Gold Street Cafe. It’s just our front porch, but that’s what we call it. We are of two houses on the street with one and somehow it seemed fitting to name it – so it’s been that way ever since.
This past weekend, I swept off little red maple buds, wiped down the two tables and assorted chairs, re-stacked the remnant firewood in the corner, and dusted off the sign – leaning it against the front window where it’s been for the better part of seven years now.
That happy ritual is a soft opening of sorts.
From the earliest hint of warm in the spring until the frosty breath of late fall you’ll find us out there – her quiet nod making it official year after year, in print on that old sign.
It’s not a real cafe, but it’s our best place. It’s our waiting-for-someone-to-come-home place and our waving-until-the-tail-lights-are-gone place.
It’s our foyer to the world and our vestibule to home.
It’s our Gold Street Cafe.
Just Sifting 
I have been to the Gold Street Cafe. On a scale of one to ten, I rate the atmosphere a 10; the hospitality, 11; the conversation, 12; the owners, 100.
LikeLiked by 1 person
We seem to attract the most esteemed and delightful people to round out the crowd. Thank you!
LikeLike
I love this Deb. And I love a porch, any porch. I remember our “knocking the school down” party we had on your porch. Your mom knew exactly what you needed, didn’t she?
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thanks, Suzanne! That was a memorable event and time for sure. I think were way overdue for another gathering – Maybe a Back to School one – In Spring!
LikeLike
I have many splendid memories at my visits to the Gold Street Cafe. Warm summer evenings listening to night sounds, crisp auntumn days sharing a charcuterie and a cold hefeweize, and an impromtu winter soltice celebration, where a beer and bump was served along with the sharp afternoon light. The hosts there are kind-hearted folks who always greet their guests like long, lost relatives with a kiss on the cheek and a warm hug. Generosity abounds at the cafe, too. The cantina there seems like an endless cornucopia from which all variety of cured meats, fine cheeses, dried fruits, and homemade liquors are available. More impressively, the hosts are promiscuous with their liquor cabinet and the resident mixologist creatively serves all manor of seasonally inspired drinks. I remember quite fondly a delicious French 75 that was whipped up at a recent vernal equinox feast hosted at the Cafe. The hosts are trigger-happy partiers and are ready at a moment’s notice to celebrate even the most lame holiday. Not long ago, I was invited, last minute, to the Cafe to toast “Trim Your Goat’s Beard Day,” which is largely celebrated by South American Andean ranchers. But there we were, one cold winter’s night raising a glass of proseco to coiffing goat beards! There’s always something going on at the Cafe. So, if you are ever in the neighborhood, I encourage you to drop in and say “hey.” You wont be disappointed you did.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Wow. What can I say to this other than that you are a part of what makes it so 🙂
LikeLike