My family sat ’round the table
Thanksgiving Day,
They smiled and grinned and waited.

It was my first year holiday cooking
For a family of eight,
A feast they’d all surely anticipated.

I’d slaved and I’d worked
On that meal for two days
I NEEDED to impress the fam!

They thought I was a slacker,
An incapable bum,
Unable to prepare a mere yam.

But boy were they wrong!
I had an idea,
That would prove I was creative AND smart!

So I hopped in my car and I drove, nearly sped
Until I finally reached
My local organic food mart.

I waited in line for what felt like years,
With my arms aching
From hours of holding my loot.

But let me just tell you,
My idea was flawless!
All Thanksgivings in compare would be destitute!

I bought cranberries, a turkey,
Canned goods galore,
A grocery list to impress Hernando Cortez!

But what weighed me down
Strained at my muscles the most,
Was my bag that held 12 pounds of Cherry Flavored Pez.
I went home with my groceries
Inspired and ready,
And the feast preparations began.

I made all the traditional Thanksgiving whatever,
So I could put into play
My ingenious game plan.

I ground up Pez to sprinkle on broccoli,
Took handfuls
To artfully mix into the soup,

I chopped and I diced them to throw in the salad
Knowing I’d be a hit
With EVERY age group.

At last for the final finishing touch,
I smiled, I beamed,
Wiped my brow, and stood tall,

And I reached to unwrap another cherry colored container
To fill the turkey
With the greatest stuffing of all.

I stood at the door with my masterpiece,
Waiting,
As a single Pez fell to the floor,

Because I knew for a fact that my family
Had never
Had my kind of Thanksgiving dinner before.

—By Jayne B., 16, New Jersey ♦