Garlic

My mum cannot stand the smell

and forbids it in her kitchen.

When she leaves home

for a weekend away,

I buy five bulbs from Tesco

hide them in the highest cupboard

and cook them.

The feeling of mischief

when I crush each clove

with the flat of the knife

and scatter the tiny slices

into casseroles and Bolognaise,

dinner after dinner,

salad after salad

is pungent.

This is how a 24-year-old rebels.