from the oven

from the oven

by Gina Vance on Wednesday, April 27, 2011 at 7:26pm

the aroma of roasted turkey

filling the house awoke buried

memories from a long-ago

little girls heart today

they seem to go hand in hand

with cranberry-jelly-belly-laughs

and bread and butter dialogues

singing around the kitchen table

lemon meringue pie and coffee

strong and black

there is a sense of holiday

and a hunger for yesterday

as my nose takes me on this journey

to happy childhood days

my Papa in his white undershirt

cigarette smoke (menthol flavored)

lingers there mingling with the scent of sweat

and a talcum powdered bosom

Grams rose scented perfume smelled

like heaven and home to me

I see them in my minds' eye

love written on every wrinkle and gray hair...

what a lovely feast of heart

to nibble on and cherish

as I finish up these dishes

delicious!

fervor

reverent whispers fill the hallway

see them tip-toe as they gather

as they gather at the river

on a Sunday afternoon

babies crying tempers heating

fans moving to and fro

create breezes for the flies to enjoy

little boys picking boogers

little girls squirming

hot sweaty thighs stuck

on those old wooden pews

trees strung with moss and antiquity

and the asphalt in the parking-lot

fries eggs and bare feet in the shade

hymns are sung and prayers released

too heavy with humidity and guilt to fly

up and out to heaven or down to hell

relief in the form of a shouted "Hallelujah"

ejaculation for the soul? I've always wondered

as my mind wanders in and out of holy byways

into yesterday's sin.

Amen Brothers and Sisters. Amen.