Day #16 of A-Poem-a-Day Until Christmas

Photo Credit: flickriver.com

PFEFFERNEUSE MEMORIES

Spice rocks

covered in snowy sugar

rolled around the bottom

of the ceramic cookie crock

till Mommy finished them;

dunkers in her coffee cup

except for the time

I told Mommy

I’d invited classmates

for a party

and she told me

it wasn’t my birthday

there’d be no party

and the classmates

arrived anyway

Her only offering:

those spicy clunkers

in the bottom

of the crock

As a young mother

experimenting

with new recipes

at Christmastime,

I stirred thick batter

darkened by molasses

cinnamon, nutmeg

clove and pepper dash

Couldn’t quite pinpoint

the old familiar fragrance

wafting in the air

Pinched a bit of dough

rolled it between my palms

placed it on the shiny

aluminum sheet, then

again, again and again

in three neat rows

of smooth brown domes

one inch apart.

I baked them

removed them to racks

dusted them

with confectioner’s sugar

and while still warm

picked one up to sample…

and laughed heartily.

Now I was the mom

at work in my kitchen

baking for my children

the very same cookie

I consistently spurned—

Will these rich, fragrant

pfefferneuse

(made by my hands)

clink in the crock

like the stale clunkers

of my youth

and wait only to be dunked

in my coffee cup

when the crocuses

push their heads up

through the snow?

Maude Carolan Pych

*I think I’ll add a few pfefferneuse to the cookie platter at the holiday event coming to the Ant Bookstore & Café in Clifton, NJ, this Saturday at 7 p.m. I will be the featured poet with a variety of Christmas poems to share. There will also be holiday music and treats and a festive atmosphere. Come, join the fun! It’s free!

The Ant is located at 345 Clifton Avenue.