I think turkey, stuffing and cranberries,
probably sweet potatoes and a green veggie
would be enough, but Lee insists on corn pudding,
Max only eats white potatoes, Sue says Waldorf
salad is tradition and Randi’s roasted vegetables
were a hit last year.  And while the turkey roasts
we’ll all be hungry so I buy bagels for lunch,
smoked salmon, humus and guacamole,
tortilla chips with salsa, Havarti cheese and crackers,
dried apricots, figs and clementines on sale.

Sam just wants dessert and Bill assures him
there’ll be pumpkin and apple pies,
Jen’s brownies, Christina’s chocolate chip cookies,
butter pecan ice cream and a box of truffles.
And because it’s also Sue and Sam’s birthdays,
Jimmy brought Krispy Kreme’s all the way from New Paltz.  

But twenty pounds of  turkey overwhelms the pan,
I forget the giblets in the neck which reminds me
of the book I used to read to my first graders,
the one about the Tappletons, how the frozen turkey
bounced out the back door, rolled into the pond,
how the salad got fed to a pet, potatoes dripped off walls
from an unwatched blender, pies sold out at the bakery.

But our family at long last feasts, the chutney with grapes
gets rave reviews and even though I forget the coffee and tea
(though no one complains), we feel satisfied and full
And, like the Tappletons, we all agree this Thanksgiving
was special and it had very little to do with the food!


This poem first appeared in the Milford Journal (2021).
Used here with permission.