If turkeys could talk

The following post contains a class project my daughter wrote 2 years ago. I’ve posted it here before, but since this is Thanksgiving week, I thought it might be a good time to revisit it, as it helps me remember how grateful I am for my kids. Even if they’re a little weird…

As a parent, I secretly delight when I see my children take interest in or excel at something that I’m into. Just as I cringe when I see a less desirable trait that I share rear its ugly head. But in all honesty, as long as they are true to who they are, I’m good with it. But sometimes my kids surprise me and make me wonder how much (whether through nurture or nature), I have influenced the way their minds work. Such was the case at my daughter’s 2rd grade class open house.

When I walked into my daughter’s classroom, her teacher greeted my husband and me, then immediately asked if we had seen her turkey. Typically, kids this age and younger make a paper turkey, and on each feather write something they are thankful for. On this particular turkey, their instructions were to imagine the turkey could talk and write some of the things that he or she would say. Many of the kids had things like, “Gobble, gobble” and “Happy Thanksgiving”, or even “My name is Tom”. Imagine my surprise when I read the following on my daughter’s turkey:

Please do not eat me because I am pregnant.

Please do not eat me because I am krazy!

Please do not eat me because I am too big for your oven.

Please do not eat me because I will explode in your oven and cover it with blood.

Please do not eat me because I have diarrhea.

Perhaps the apple doesn’t fall too far from the tree after all…