A Thanksgiving Turkey or a Fox: A Thanksgiving Dinner To Remember

Every year at Thanksgiving the family would always try to come together to eat Thanksgiving dinner. Some family members make it while others cannot get out of work time because of work schedules. It is one of my favorite holidays because it is a time to give thanks for everything. Well one year my mother shared a story with us about a Thanksgiving Hoke’s played on her by her father. My grandfather loved to go hunting and that Thanksgiving he was especially exited to feed his family. They thought that he went out and caught a turkey for Thanksgiving dinner. Everyone was so excited that Thanksgiving because a turkey didn’t have to be purchased because granddaddy caught a turkey. So grandmother fixed everything: ham, stuffing, macaroni and cheese, rice, collard greens, sweet potato pies, cake, potato salad, and peach cobbler.  

It was supposed to be a Thanksgiving to remember, but my grandfather told my grandmother he would take care of the Turkey. So he prepared what my mother and her siblings thought was this beautiful Turkey for Thanksgiving. The family had to find ways to entertain themselves while the Thanksgiving dinner was being prepared. Uncle Obediah always had these great stories he loved to tell during the holidays. This year he started off by saying, “This is truly the year of giving thanks”. 

He said one morning his dad and his brother my grandfather walked to a corner store to get some snacks for the kids and while they were walking they saw a huge black snake. My uncle said his instincts told him to run but my grandfather said no “Obie” which was my uncle’s nickname. He said don’t run that’s going to make matters worst, so all three of them stood in a line and for some reason that snake crawled across their legs and went straight into the bushes. Uncle “Obie” said he was so afraid and he wanted to just run, but he listened to his dad and my grandfather his brother.

 Well they were almost home from the corner store when it began to pour down raining and they ran as fast as they could to the house. When they got there to their surprise a big black snake was sitting on the front porch and refused to move. Now uncle “Obie” said he scratched his head because he wondered if that wasn’t the same snake that crossed their path earlier when they were on the way back from the corner store. Now my uncle’s and my grandfather were no strangers to seeing snakes because they hunt and lived in the woods. Well this is where the story takes a turn for the tickle your funny bone side. Uncle “Obie” said he asked the snake are you following us and he told us the snake said yes. So he said why are you following us and the snake said because earlier you guys cut me off and I was headed to the woods for my dinner, a tasty red fox. Uncle “Obie” said you were rushing across our feet earlier to go catch and eat a fox and the snake said yes. So uncle “Obie” laughed because he didn’t want the snake to eat them.

 My grandfather said for my uncle and his brother to step aside because he was going to take that snake out of his misery. The snake said no need for all of that because I saw a tasty wood rat running across your lawn if I hurry maybe I can catch it and the snake slithered away. My uncle “Obie” said the moral of this story is to be careful of letting a snake cross your path because you never know when it will pay you a visit. We all laughed because his stories were so hilarious. My uncle and his brother we called “”Ollie” were very close and sometimes they would get together and wrestle each other. So we asked them if they were going to wrestle this year and my uncle “Obie” said I would but your uncle “Ollie” has what we old folks call “Artha” and we laughed and said what is “Artha” and he grinned and said arthritis. He can’t wrestle like he used to. Uncle “Ollie” said yeah that might get be true but you have what is called “Ittis” and we all said what is that and uncle “Ollie” said can’t fight Ittis. We laughed at my uncle’s insult because he is normally so serious and uncle “Obie” is the jokey one. After they entertained us with stories and jokes my grandmother and grandfather were getting the final touches put on our wonderful Thanksgiving dinner. 

Grandfather and grandfather prepared the table and had all of the food laid out on the table with fancy napkins and the good dishes and glassware to eat off of for Thanksgiving. Well grandfather gave the prayer as he usually would each year, but this year his prayer took a little longer as he thanked the Lord for the great feast, family, and his hunting escapade that lead to the capture of this great Turkey. Everyone was having a good time just eating, laughing, and excited about the Thanksgiving Holiday. Once everyone finished eating, my mother told me her father stood up at the dinner table and said, “Hark children you just ate a fox.” 

Everyone thought they would pass out from laughter and shock because the meat was prepared so well and tasted good so they never knew the difference until he mentioned it. That was one Thanksgiving my mother said she would never forget because she ate fox. Now the animal that showed up for Thanksgiving that year unexpected was not a turkey but a fox that my grandfather had the time of his life fooling his family it was a turkey. 

So my mother asked me what would I have done if I ate that fox thinking it was a turkey? I told her that I probably would have gagged, screamed, and just been disgusted to know that I ate a fox. She laughed and said be careful what you eat from family members during the holidays it just might be a fox in disguise.