Doctors Orders
You’ll do it yourself – the day after the doctor
said, “no heavy lifting.” And your husband
(dreaming again) insisted on a patriarchal turkey
like you always used to have, when he’d
handle the fowl part of Thanksgiving.
You fixed side-dishes; but cooking giblets,
stuffing the bird, making gravy – that was his
domain. You just stayed out of his way.
But this morning – 20 pounds of thawed raw
flesh in the sink – he swore he couldn’t
remember a thing about it, so it’s up to you.
Lifting down the great ceramic crock
from the top-shelf cabinet; mixing chunks
apple, celery, onion, mushroom, cornbread for
the stuffing… well why not, it’s up to you,
you have some cabbage in the fridge
that needs using, and cabbage has such a sweet-
peppery taste. Stuff the cavities, ease that
ponderous turkey onto its rack in the oven.
Three cookbooks spread out on the table, full
of theories on salting or not, stuffing
or not, how long at what temp… you’ll
just wing it. That’s how a bird gets through life.
Copyright © Taylor Graham | Year Posted 2016
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