A-Poem-a-Day Until Christmas
When I was a child
my mother's best friend, Viola Fullard
would appear at our door, before Christmas
with a bakery box of the most exquisite
home-made cookies.
I always hoped she wouldn't forget us...
She never did!
 |
| Photo credit: pixelsandcrumbs.com |
A NEW RECIPE
I flip through a cookbook
and select, as I sometimes do
a recipe I’ve never tried before—
a cookie, full of aromatic spices
cinnamon, nutmeg, clove
even a pinch of pepper
I stir some dark, robust molasses
and the spices into flour
butter and sugar
then roll teaspoonsful
of the thick brown batter into balls
line them neatly in rows
on cookie sheets
and slip them in the oven
Gradually the kitchen
fills with an old, familiar fragrance
I can’t immediately identify
In a few minutes, I remove a pan
from the oven, wait for the cookies to cool
then roll each one in powdered sugar
as the recipe indicates
One taste
transports me to childhood—
This is pfeffernusse!
that classic Christmas cookie
that spicy little gem I hated
the cookies that turned to rocks
clunkers at the bottom of the cookie jar
These were the cookies Mom offered
when there was no other sweet in the house
the ones that bobbed in her coffee cup
dripping as she ate them with a spoon
Today, all those mingled spices
the dash of black pepper
are pleasingly hot upon my tongue
the sweet sugar coating
the pungent aroma
are positive proof
the taste buds of my youth
have definitely
grown up
Maude Carolan Pych
We’ve Been Invited Back
to read holiday poetry at
The Ant Bookstore & Café
Saturday, December 15, at 7 p.m.
Sr. Jane Abeln, SMIC
Pastor EJ Emerson
Maude Carolan Pych
Barbara Williams-Hubbard
COME JOIN US
for a festive evening
of poetry, music & homemade Christmas cookies!
Admission is free
No comments:
Post a Comment