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Summer Family Cookout

Criss-cross, hamburger toss,
_Flip that sizzlin’ patty!
Pretty please, and top with cheese!
_You’re the Great Grill Master, Daddy!

Three-two-one, slide it on a bun!
_With ketchup, tomato and lettuce
Hip-hip-hop, put a pickle on top
_Call the kids to come and get it!

Mom’s in the shade with cold lemonade
_And potato salad, cool and creamy.
What a tasty treat! Sure beats the heat
_With the weather so gosh darn steamy.

Everybody’s yellin’ for a chunk of watermelon,
_Kids run through the sprinkler on the lawn,
Fireflies blinking as the sun goes sinking,
_And the streetlights finally come on.

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Doug Stoiber writes poetry and short fiction and is a member of the Mossy Creek Writers in East Tennessee. A dozen of his short stories and seventeen of his poems have been selected for publication in literary journals, poetry and fiction anthologies, and on literary websites.

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14 Responses

  1. Roy Eugene Peterson

    Doug, this is classic entertainment at its finest. I thoroughly enjoyed your version of a cookout done with humor and finesse.

    Reply
    • Doug Stoiber

      Roy,
      Thanks for your positive comments. This was me and my family in the 1960s.

      Reply
  2. Mark Stellinga

    A really fun piece, Doug, and I’m suddenly feeling extremely hungry! 🙂

    Reply
    • Doug Stoiber

      Mark,

      Your very kind comments are much appreciated. You would have loved my mom’s potato salad.

      Reply
    • Doug Stoiber

      Margaret,

      Nostalgia for my childhood and the magic of summer fun. Thanks for reading and commenting.

      Reply
  4. Paul A. Freeman

    I’ll be out of the Sahara, having my first barbecue in 11 months next week – you’ve sure put me in the mood, Doug.

    Reply
    • Doug Stoiber

      Paul,

      I hope your cookout is every bit as delicious and memorable as the ones of my childhood memories. Thanks.

      Reply
  5. Susan Jarvis Bryant

    Your words bob along with a musicality and energy that makes me smile… I can smell the burgers, I can taste the potato salad… and I am ready for my very own Great-Grill-Master husband to see to my hungry needs, such is the power of your poem. Thank you, Doug!

    Reply
  6. Carole Mertz

    I truly enjoy the flap snap of your hamburger toss and all its fixin’s down to the yellin’ for the melon. What a perfected light-hearted treat for summertime grillin’ and poetry swillen’.

    Reply
    • Doug Stoiber

      Carole,
      If my poem is a light treat reminiscent of summer cookouts for you, than I consider the poem a success. Thank you for reading and commenting.

      Reply
  7. Cheryl A Corey

    Doug, your poem is delightful from start to finish. Only yesterday, I was reminiscing about being a kid in the backyard on a summer night, and how exciting it was to catch a firefly, cup it in your hand, and study the glow.

    Reply
    • Doug Stoiber

      Cheryl,

      Wasn’t that the magical fun of a summer evening? I am pleased that you enjoyed the poem and the memory.

      Reply

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