My Mom’s Recipe Seated in Her Favorite Chair

My Mom’s Recipe
Seated in Her Favorite Chair

Surrounded by her beautiful flowers garden
Growing everywhere
The fence, under the tree, and side of house.
Mom’s folded arms, hands.  Her heart filled
 Together with despair
Four Sons in U.S. service.
Two teenagers at home
Couldn’t spare.
Two daughters raising families,
One in Nursing College.
Mom worked cleaning other folks houses,
washing, hanging clothes, ironing
Scrubbing floors, shining silverware. Then her own chores of work
Mom’s health unknown.
Made her way to church often
Next door.
Praise and worship.
She adored
Sunday school, prayer B.Y.P.U.
Night service too.
In the back yard Dad was busy, planting. Watering,
Cutting weeds, building chicken pen, feeding chicken,
and gathering eggs.
He had grapes, oranges. Cantaloupes and watermelons.
Mom’s cooking pots were filled with fresh vegetables
 Beans, beets, cabbage, carrots, cucumbers, string beans, sweet corn, green onions,
Garlic, red pepper, and tomatoes.
Her pots were steaming hot with good eating food out of Dad’s garden
How Mom did it she threw in a pinch of this and a hand full of that
Mixed with a skillet cornbread, bisques, and cakes.
Raisin cobbler, peach cobbler, sweet potato pies, soft teacakes
and baked sweet potatoes. An enjoyable meal made from scratch,
Mixed with sweet Kool-Aid, and cold Iced tea.
Never a meal without dessert.

--by Ruth Payne Franklin, 2012