Scott E. Thomas

THANKSGIVING IN THE BASEMENT

Tell me
Did we not one year
Have Thanksgiving in the basement?
The sunlight was slanted
Because the window was thin like a domino
And up high.
Grandma washed potatoes in the utility sink.
The pumpkin pie cooled
On the clothes dryer.
Louie took a drag from a Camel,
Blew out the smoke with a puff saying,
"Your Mom should take the turkey
Over to the workbench.
There are plenty of saws."
The cement floor was cold
And a centipede skittered by the litter box
While Dad said grace.
I saw it skitter.
(Yes, my eyes were open.)
You say you don't remember,
That it was just a dream,
That we spent every Thanksgiving
In Nana's row house
Where light came in at the ends only
Like a paper towel roll,
And come to think of it,
Why would we?
There were no raids
When we were boys
And back then
The nuclear plant
Was intact,
No radioactive rods
Molting
In sour blue snow.

Scott E. Thomas's background includes a B.A. in Creative Writing/Literature from Bard College, a M.S. in Library Science from Columbia University, and a M.A. in English from the University of Scranton. He is currently employed as Head of Information Technologies & Technical Services at the Scranton Public Library in Scranton, PA. His work has been published in Mankato Poetry Review, The Kentucky Poetry Review, Sulphur River Literary Review, Confrontation, Webster Review, River Styx Magazine, Poetry East and other journals.