The Never-Ending Turkey ….

The Never-Ending Turkey ….


The day before Christmas, a turkey was cooked.
It must have weighed 35 pounds!
You may think I’m crazy; it can’t be that big,
But trust me, its size just astounds!

My dad did the honors and he carved the bird
With slices the size of your plate.
We anxiously waited with tongues hanging out,
(With teenagers, you can relate…)

We gobbled our meal with our usual zest,
Of corn, mashed potatoes and peas,
And stuffing and pudding and cranberry sauce,
Topped off with a small piece of cheese.

Our plates were all empty, our tummies were full,
We knew it was time to clean up.
My mom washed the dishes; I put them away.
The table scraps went to the pup.

We ate turkey sandwiches all through the week,
And we enjoyed each tasty bite.
We had turkey slices on toasted rye bread
And slices with mayo on white.

Although it was good, I was glad of the day
When turkey was not on my plate.
I dreamed about pork chops, lasagna and steak,
But those were not meant for my fate.

A week after Christmas, almost dinner time,
I smelled a delectable scent.
“Hey, Mom! What’s for dinner?” I ran in to ask.
“I’m starving!” (– my standard lament.)

“It’s just a new recipe, come try a taste,”
My mom said to me with a smile.
She’s like a magician when she works with food.
Her skills are indeed versatile.

A big pot of chili was there on the stove
With peppers and onions and spice.
She gave me a taste and it was delicious!
“What’s in it?” I asked, to be nice.

“It’s turkey!” she says with a big happy smile.
“And tomatoes and chilies and beans.
This left-over turkey could feed us all year!”
I guess now I know what fear means!

It’s now two days later, I shuddered to think
Of what Mom might have in the pot.
It looks like spaghetti; well that’s not too bad.
No turkey in that. (I hope not!)

“So what do you think of the turkey meat balls?”
My mom says to us with a grin.
I try not to choke and I say “Dad wants more!”
Then Dad kicks me hard in the shin.

The next day at breakfast, Mom puts down our plates
With scrambled eggs, turkey and toast.
My sister and I each have lumps in our throats
And poor Dad looks white as a ghost!

Mom has been busy with all of her cookbooks,
Each day brings a new recipe.
We cringe as we wonder what she will try next.
Will our meals ever be turkey-free?

We’ve had turkey tacos and turkey pot pie,
Stuffed peppers with turkey and rice,
Meatloaf with turkey and turkey linguini,
And turkey-shrimp cocktails on ice.

We’ve had turkey salad; we’ve had turkey soup.
We’ve had almost all we could take,
But this was the worst, if you can imagine,
Our mom baked a turkey pound cake!

My sis got the freezer and I got the fridge
As Dad held Mom tight by the sleeve.
“My dear, we must tell you, enough is enough!
It’s time for this turkey to leave!”

We found it in foil, in Ziplocs and Baggies;
We found it in Tupperware, too.
We took all that turkey right out to the trash
And to it we all said, “Adieu!”

“You wasted my turkey!” Mom wailed to my dad.
My dad said, “I don’t give a damn!
We’ll never have turkey for Christmas again!”
(I guess for next year we’ll have ham.)


rhyme pattern: abcb
meter pattern: 11-8-11-8

19 stanzas! Whew!