text: The turkey didn’t have a shot when Elizabeth went to pick him up for Thanksgiving. He was already meant for the table of a pack of hungry children. Little did this poor turkey know that his life would be sacrificed in vain. As Elizabeth proudly marched into the home with a turkey that was bound for the table for her seven children she would have no idea if the outcome later. When she arrived home her children excitedly exclaimed “mom is that really for supper?” In which Elizabeth replied “ this lovely bird will be for supper and we will be having a grand pumpkin pie as well”. There were six girls and a miracle little boy in this family so the girls were old enough to help with cooking this great feast. Grandpa would be joining them later along with their father once their hunting adventure was done. The pies got started first by the children while Elizabeth got the bird freshly cleaned in the sink. Every effort would go into preparing this bird for Grandpa who only visited once a year. The children were always hungry as growing children are so this bird would go a long way. The idea excited Elizabeth to have meat long after the celebration was over. The 20 pound bird was what could be afforded .only when on special ,and it was quite a treat to imagine all the meals it would serve her hungry brood. The turkey had to be completely washed in salt as she had been throughly taught by her mother. Once the bird was salted the butter was melted and drizzled in healing amounts so as to cover the bird. A light seasoning was out on top to decorate what would soon be the crispy skin that would melt in one’s mouth. Elizabeth was proud of the giant bird in the pan, put the foil on top and put the lovely creature in the oven. The pies were sitting ready to be baked when the bird was 2/3 done so there was nothing left to do but wait. While waiting Elizabeth got creative in making some homemade biscuits and involved her tiny son to use the circle cookie cutters to help. He enjoyed making more of a mess with the flour than anything. When the biscuits were complete it was time to wait to put them in and the pies for a few more hours. The directions on the turkey for cooking time had been done so off for some family monopoly time. Playing monopoly is usually intent at the Stice house so the game goes on and on. No worries because the turkey had plenty of time. The kids were very bossy about which game piece they would play but Elizabeth always chose the golden pup. Her daughter Cassie was always insisting on being banker and no one caught on to her schemes as to why. Seems there was a cheat in the house. Nothing was normal in a monopoly game . If it wasn’t arguments over the new rules then it was about unfair swapping of properties. The time was flying by as the game was getting pretty fierce. What seemed like an eternity and the timer has not yet gone off so no one had checked on the bountiful bird. Then the nightmare happened for which for which no one would ever forget. Elizabeth would certainly not be soon to forget as the smoke started to curl in fluffy billows of black from the oven. All the smoke alarms went off in unison and if that were not bad enough that’s the precise moment when Grandpa made his entrance. Followed of course by the children’s father. The piercing noise of the alarms were sure to send the neighbors running as they valued their lives when intense cooking took place. No one wants to see their neighbors home billowing with smoke. The look on Grandpa’s face was priceless And Elizabeth was mortified. She tried to make light as she turned off the oven and set about turning off all the alarms and opening the windows and doors. As she took the poor bird out of the oven it was not just overcooked but to her horror it was black as night. The bird literally burned up on the heavy butter. So, it looked like a shallow crispy critter and was not meant for any kind of human consumption. The bird clung to its lifeless body as if to protest life in vain. No longer would it go to feed hungry children. It was so shriveled that it was evident the heat had torched it from the inside out. She tried to pull the bird apart but realized it was indeed charred all the way through. Elizabeth was getting a rude stare from Grandpa who also usually clicked his tongue when he was mad. She tried to make light of the situation and said “ we can find something else to eat “. She tried to suggest the ever-baked tuna casserole but all the kids started grumbling and whining. The younger girls who were just 7 and 9 started to say “ we want turkey“ “ we want turkey“ in a kind of chant. It was as if they couldn’t grasp that the turkey had gone south and there was nothing to be done. Grandpa grunted and then started to order pizza. Then he proceeded to loudly complained at the high cost and he shouldn’t have to afford this as a guest. It was all Elizabeth could do to not burst into tears. She was mortified at all the drama this has caused. Although the bird was burned and Grandpa would be mad forever life would go on. Inside she was determined not let it ruin the Holiday. She was a positive person but knew when it was time to get some air. She directly marched to the kitchen with pride and grabs the bird and her camera. She remembered the changing colors of the leaves that had wisped their way up by the trellis of grape vines. It was the perfect setting for a photo shoot. The evidence of the day that a lovely bird met its maker. She put the crispy blackened turkey in the golden fall leaves to have a photo shoot while everyone else was whining and waiting for pizza. The art that was created that day in the photo session was done with love and creativity. When she was done she left the bird intact in its charred art form exactly where the last photo was taken. If anyone dared question her sanity at that point it would have not mattered one bit. The memory to her would not be sad day in which dinner was ruined with a bird burnt to a literal blackened crisp. She has a positive mindset that it would all be okay. No one let’s Elizabeth live this Thanksgiving day down but she holds her head high and shows her photo to all with pride and laughter.