Moonbeams shine through the windowpanes, casting shadows on the carpet, the house dark and quiet as I dream about cake. Every wonderful milestone or anniversary or special occasion I have ever celebrated has included cake, beautiful layers of delicate sweetness that make any extraordinarily special day even better. But I propose that cake be had even on days like the one I had today. An ordinary day filled with errands and writing and cleaning and trying to make everybody happy …

but I don’t have any cake. I look in the pantry. The next best thing would be a cookie. I see they’re storebought and a poor substitute for cake. There are granola bars and chips and a bag of Goldfish, but none of them are cake. Things are getting quite desperate.

After the day I’ve had, I need cake. Maybe if I eat a cracker and swig a cool glass of milk at the same time it will feel like eating cake. But a saltine and soymilk taste like salty, thick cream and nothing like cake.

There are days when a writer, mom, wife, daughter, sister, cook, chauffeur, planner, teacher, helper, just needs cake!

But at last, there are just some days where it’s not possible to have our cake and eat it too.

So I take one last bite of the cracker, sip the last of the soymilk and call it a night.

Goodnight.