The steel pot bubbles slowly with parsley, onion, carrot, a turkey neck, and heart making a stock for the gravy.  The bird still cooks in the oven.  The Wracks is helping grandma make the thanksgiving repast.  White potatoes in a cauldron boil merrily and pureed yams with marshmallows on top wait to go into the oven when the turkey comes out to cool.  Long green beans boil too, waiting to be drenched in olive oil and salted with garlic.  Two store-bought pies wait on the table, to go in the oven after the yams, blueberry and cherry to top off the super Thanksgiving meal.  Then come the guests.

First arrive the Fonz with his Beau, a brunette, whom he found at junior college that seems to get along with the tall, gangly strapping man dressed in Levi denim with a white shirt and tie.  She comes in a one piece dress with high heels, and gold earrings, and her light brown skin somewhat match the brown mahogany table where dinner is to be served.  Together, they go and sit on the couch, in the family room near the dining room table.  Soon the doorbell rings again and the Wracks answer it.  In steps Kool in black dress slacks with a white short sleeve shirt opened at the chest.  His long goldish brown hair with a permanent wave adorns his head like a rock star on stage at a concert somewhere near.  The Wracks could just imagine the shining sprinkles placed in his long golden locks.  His date is even better.  She wears a two piece suit over a mini-skirt way above her knees.  She is southern Italian with sandy blond hair down to her waist, and blue eyes with a steely gaze.   The Wracks imagines the two as Atalla the Hun reborn and Circe the enchantress, she is that exquisite.   The Wracks does not have a date, he doesn’t have any money.  Kool pulls out a cigarette and lights up and the two go and sit on the couch in the living room where the Wracks join them.  They talk teen talk and Kool asks for a beer so he brings him a Michelob and Maria a glass of white wine. 

Father Wracks rings the wine glasses with a spoon and yells, “Come to dinner”.

 The table is lengthened with two inserts to accommodate the eight people.  Mother and father sit at the poles of the table while the Fonz and his date sit next to father Wracks and Kool and Maria sit opposite the Wracks and his grandmother Theresa.   Father Wracks passes around a bottle of Johannesburg Riesling and everyone fills their glass and the meal begins.  

Let us say a prayer and thank God for another year with good food and our friends. 

The Wracks bows his head and says “amen”.

The guests line up at the buffet, placed on the alcove of the pass-through in front of the kitchen.  Everyone piles their plate high with turkey, stuffing, candied yams, garlic beans, and mashed potatoes, and covers everything with a light coating of brown gravy.  Everyone eats while Christmas music gently plays over the intercom from the stereo. All the guests get seconds and sit down and eat and another bottle of wine opens and is passed around the table.  Grandma takes her turkey wing and puts it on the Wracks plate.  “Eat it she says.”   The Wracks stands up and clears the plates and sets them in the sink to be delivered to the dishwasher presently.  The hot pies come out of the oven and are placed on mats on the table with a red tablecloth with a brown cornucopia set in the center.  Then the guests eat pie.  Huge slices of fruit pie slavered in whipped crème from Ready whip aerosol containers.   Everyone is done so Grandma serves Yuban coffee from a decanter into fine porcelain cups with a green band around them and green saucers below.  Kool pushes his chair back, smiles and lights up a cigarette.   Maria looks at the Wracks and then the Wracks clear the dessert dishes.  All the guests including mother and father Wracks move to the living room and father Wracker breaks out a bottle of Courvoisier cognac and small sifter.  The cognac passes around the room.  The Wracks and grandma do the dishes.  They fill the dishwasher with the first load and set it going then start to scrub the pots, pans and baking dishes with steel wool.  The short load finalizes and the Wracks puts away hot ceremonial China in its place in the boxes where it is used several times a year.   Next, the pots and pans place into the dishwasher and a second load begins.  Grandma washes the fine crystal stemware piece by piece and the Wracks dry the glasses with a cotton towel and place them in the cupboard in the family room.  After they are finished grandma goes back to her room and the Wracks joins the guest in the white living room with green and white shag carpeting.  The bottle of cognac is nearly finished the guests sit back in their chairs and digest the holiday meal.  Kool lights up another cigarette. A heavy smoker, it doesn’t seem to bother him when paddling in big surf.   Christmas music plays on.  Around nine o’clock P.M.   The Fonz and his date excuse themselves because she has to be home.  Kool and Maria are next to leave and Kool asks the Wracks if he wants to go to the Over the Rainbow club with him and his date.   The Wracks declines politely.   They leave the house and Kool sits Maria in the front seat of his F-250 red ford truck with huge wheels and they blast off into the night.  The Wracks thanks his mother and father for a delicious meal and puts away the turkey carcass into the refrigerator for leftovers tomorrow and check his grandma and then goes to his room.   He thanks the Lord for his family and Thanksgiving and his friends and another day of life.  It was a wonderful thanksgiving in his youth and he will have a lot more.   “Bon Appetite,” says Marvin and have a wonderful Thanksgiving.