Just Desserts ~~~~~l~ spooner

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Just Desserts

Do unto others as you would hove them do unto you.

The Golden Rule

"Great dinner, Hon , " said Dad, kissing Mom good-bye, then giving a kiss to Sherre ,Lizzy and me. "Don't wait up, I won't be home 'ti1 after three. "

I was disappointed to see him go. I missed not having din- ner together as a family now that Dad had to work nights. He and Mom ate early,leaving the three of us to eat alone. "Come on and eat, kids ,"Mom said after homework was done. "It's hamburgers tonight. "

We slid into the diner-style booth Dad had made last year before he lost his job as an upholsterer. Little Lizzy was squashed between Sherre and me. The booster seat she had given up since becoming a6'big four-year-01d"had been re- placed with the hips Sherre, now a teen, seemed to have sprouted overnight.

Mom slid a thin hamburger, one by one, onto each bun then - plop, plop, plop -three thick spoonfuls of her taste-

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less ,lumpy mashed potatoes followed.

Our barely audible6'Uhhh, "was stopped short by a sharp look from Mom. "Eat all those potatoes, girls,"she said. "They're filling and they're good for you. "We nodded. Times were tough and potatoes were cheap.

As soon as she left ,I took a bite of the hamburger. The smell of heavenly garlic hit my nose. The taste was sheer bliss, juicy and full of flavor. I gobbled it down in four bites.

I risked a forkful of the potatoes,chewed as little as possi- ble and struggled hard to swallow. Mom must have been ab- sent the day they taught potatoes in her Home EC class, I thought.

Sherre and Lizzy were having their share of trouble, too. Sherre gagged and Lizzy looked like she was going to throw UP.

I smoothed the potatoes around on my plate trying to make them look less massive. I could dump them in the trash. A pang of guilt shot through me at the thought ,know- ing how hard Dad worked to put food on the table. Anyway, it'd mean having to pass Lizzy to get to the garbage can,and the little tattletale would tell on me for sure.

Then the idea came to me. "Look, Lizzy ! "I pointed up. "There are footprints on the ceiling ! " "Footprints?"said Lizzy. "Where?"Her gaze followed my finger. "Up there. "I scooped up a spoonful of mashed potatoes.

Plop. t "I don't see anything, "she said. "I see them, "said Sherre ,picking up my lead and a spoon- ful of her own. "Look, Liz ,over the sink 1 "Plop.

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"I don't see them, "Lizzy whined. "Aw ,you missed it, "I said. "They're gm. 99 "I hear too much talking and not enough eafing,"Mom called from the living room. "No dessert till those plates are clean. "

Lizzy turned back to her meal. A puzzled look spread across her face. She took her fork and cautiously poked at the huge heap of potatoes now on her plate. Sherre and I snickered quietly, but Lizzy was silent, unable to take her eyes off the swollen blob. 66 9 I 11 be in there in two minutes," Mom said in a loud voice. "You girls had better be through. "

Sighing, we re-attacked the potatoes again. Lizzy stuffed her mouth full and managed to get them down with a gulp of water. I choked. Sherre chewed and chewed. Gagging, she spit the whole mess into her napkin. "Look, Liz, "she said. "Those footprints are back ! "She pointed to the ceiling. Lizzy snapped her head up. Plop ... plop. Lizzy was still looking up when Mom reached the door- way. "Elizabeth Ellen Mandell ! "she said. "What have you been doing all this time? Your sisters are almost done with their potatoes. Yours have grown ! "

Lizzy looked at her plate and gasped. Her lower lip quiv- ered and she began to whimper. 66 Never mind the waterworks, Lizzy , "said Mom. "There are starving people who would love those potatoes. Eat. "

Obediently, Lizzy scooped up another lumpy forkful and tried to eat it. Her face turned red. She sputtered. She tried to swallow. I watched with a lump in my throat as she fought to force them down.

Suddenly I felt clammy and sick to my stomach -and it

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wasn't because of the potatoes. I opened my mouth to speak, to admit to Mom what was really going on. But remembering the torture Sherre had put me through the last time I con- fessed for both of us silenced my tongue.

Sherre didn't seem to notice my guilt. As soon as Mom left the room'she was back at Lizzy like a hawk on a chick- en. "Lizzy! "She said pointing to a spot behind Lizzy's head. 46 There they are again!"Lizzy turned around in her seat. Plop.

I picked up my spoon and filled it up with the last of my potatoes, then stopped. No, I told myself. I'd rather eat

Mom's mashed potatoes the rest of my life than to watch my baby sister suffer like this.

I shoveled the potatoes into my mouth and dropped the spoon. It clattered onto my plate. At the sound,Lizzy looked down at her mashed potato mountain. She turned around again to try to find the imaginary footprints, then looked from Sherre to me,a light of understanding in her eyes.

Grasping a spoon in her pudgy little fist ,Lizzy began plop- ping potatoes onto our empty plates. 66 Lizzy ,are your potatoes gone yet?"called Mom. "Almost ! "said Lizzy cheerfully, loading on some more. "Better eat 'em all up , "she whispered to us with a grin. "Or I'll tell ! "

Beverly Spooner

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Calvin and Hobbes

by Bill Watterron

CALVIN AND HOBBES. CCJ Watterson. Reprintad with permission of UNIVERSAL PRESS SYNDIC4TE. A11 rights resemed

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A Chicken-Noodle-Soup Day

Lying is done with words and also with silence.

Adrienne Rich

"I think I should stay home from school today,Mom. I'm sick. Really ,I am. " I don't believe my fifteen-year-old sister for a minute. She hates school. This is just another one of her excuses to stay home. Again. Mom isn't as sure as I am. She's working mom who strug- gles with guilt for not being home for us. She gives Sandy the benefit of the doubt. Again. 66 You can stay home,"she 6L says, but you have to stay in bed. And I want you to eat chicken noodle soup for lunch. " We always eat canned chicken noodle soup when we're sick. It's the only time either of us likes it. Mom feels Sandy's forehead as she kisses her good-bye. "You don't feel warm,"she says. 66 Are you sure you need to stay home?" My dramatic sister lays one hand across her forehead. "I feel dizzy, "she says, "and my head hurts. I must have that eBook

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bug that's going around. " Mom reluctantly leaves for work. "I'll call you later ,Dear, "she says as she closes the door. I have to catch the bus for school. 66 Enjoy your day ,Sister Dear, "I holler over my shoulder, 66 and get well. " Sandy waves to me from the kitchen window and grins. She tries her best to look pathetic when I come home from school, loaded down with homework. I hear her scurry into the bedroom we share as I open the door. "Mom will be home soon. You'd better get your act to- gether ,"I warn. Sandy peers at me through drooping eyes. "I'm feeling a bit better, "she sighs. "Then why are you still in bed?" "Paying my dues for a day off, "she replies. "Wel1,save it for Mom,"I say. 66 You're going to need it. I need a snack. What's in the cupboard?" 66 Well, I found some donuts, and there's popcorn, and

Mom hid a package of candy bars on the top shelf. " "Got you,you little faker. Wait until Mom comes home.

This was a chicken-noodle-soup day ,remember?" "Oh ,she'll never know. " Famous last words. When Mom comes home, I'm at my desk doing home- work. I open the door a crack so I won't miss anything.

Sandy is on the couch,pressing a cool washcloth to her fore- head. 66 How are you feeling tonight?"Mom begins,in a tone of proper concern. U Better, "Sandy says with only an edge of brightness to her voice. 66 I think I can go to school tomorrow. " eBook

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Smart move ,Sister, I think. "The chicken noodle soup must have made you better," Mom says. "Did it taste good to you?" 64 Soup always tastes good when I'm sick, " Sandy says sweetly.

Liar, I think. Watch out. You have become an unsuspecting Prey. "Well, Dear,"says Mom, "you just lie there while I get supper. I don't want you to overexert yourself. Are you up to eating your favorite pizza?"

Probably not ,I think ,after a day of junk food.

Sandy manages to say ,"I think I could eat a little. "

Mom rattles around in the kitchen ,stretching pizza dough and filling it with our favorite toppings. I hear her open the trashcan.

I know what's coming next, I think I'll stay right here in my room. "Sandy, I don't see your soup can in the trash. Where is it?"

If I were you, Sister, I'd confess now. Otherwise, you're done for. But my cornered sister attempts a getaway move. "I pushed the can to the bottom,so I wouldn't smell the chicken. It was upsetting my stomach. "

That's a good one ,I have to admit. But Mom's not buying it. "Poor dear ,"clucks my predator mother. "I'll get rid of it for you.

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"That's okay, Mom. I'm feeling better now. Why don't I empty the trash while you get dinner?" "No need ,Dear. Just relax. " I hear a clatter of cans and bottles in the kitchen. "OOPS ,"says Mom. "1 dropped the trash. " eBook

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I could help her clean up, but think I'll stay here and begin my essay for English class. I have my topic, thanks to Sandy. I think I'll call it, "What a Tangled Web Weave. "

Mom's voice remains calm and pleasant. Too pleasant. "That's strange, Sandy. I can't find the chicken noodle soup can anywhere. "

There is a long silence. Sandy makes one last attempt to get out of the trap, but she is definitely the weaker one in this predator/prey game. 46 I forgot ,Mom. I put the can in the bag on the porch. "

I know that there are at least four bags on the porch,all tied up ,waiting for trash day-just as I know that Mom and Sandy will play this game to the death.

I have finished a draft about the complications of lying by the time Mom calls me to dinner. We sit at the table in si- lence. Four bags of trash are strewn on the floor.

Mom and I eat pizza,made just the way I like it ,and drink soda. There is a special treat in the oven for dessert.

In front of Sandy sits one solitary mug of chicken noodle soup.

Donna Beveridge