Aerie InternationaL - Missoula County Public Schools

taylor nicole marlow
norman, oklahoma, usa
fISh-fry
Grandfather pulls the white glass plate from the fridge with a swish.
He walks out the back door—through the kitchen and into the
garage pantry hallway.
Atop the massive deep freeze filled with frosty
quail pastries hamburger
he builds his station—
a plate of fluffy flour, corn meal, and crimson spices
a vat filled with already crackling oil
and
the crappie
caught fresh from Uncle Tony’s pond that early morning.
I sit on the step behind him, the heavy concrete floor beneath me.
My hands on my bony seven year-old knees, I lean forward to watch him
dip pat sprinkle
the powder onto each thin filet.
He is quick but skilled as he lays the fish into the
pop and sizzle
with his freckled leather hands.
He
batters fries retrieves
until the stack of golden brown is high enough for eleven hungry mouths.
Behind me, I hear the
chime and twinkle
of glass-wear and silver touching tablecloth.
I hear the
laughter and happiness
flowing from the nine other bodies.
It is almost time as Grandfather turns around to find me
the youngest
watching patiently, my eyes wide and excited.
Hey, baby Taylor, ready to eat?
He chuckles heartily and wraps me up in his bear arms as I stand.
Then, I open the door to the rest of our family.
The rest of Thanksgiving.
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