---

Renée Owen

Betty Crocker Nights

Friday evening. Dad changes out of his traveling salesman shirt and tie and into his old slippers, smokes a few cigarettes over highballs and reads the newspaper. Cooking smells  drift into the tv room—Hamburger Helper, (dreaded) frito pie, or canned chow mien with roast beef cubes from Sunday’s dinner. Mom, impatient after teaching school all day, hollers “Dinner’s on the table.” When we dally, Dad slams his fist, rattling the kitchen table, and yells “Now!” Trailed by our crying sister, my brother and I rush to our seats and sit down. Mom piles the food high on our plates. Little sis refuses to eat and runs, quick as a rabbit, out the front door to hide in the still hot Floridian night. Dad yells, “What NOW?” “It’s the meat,” Mom says. “She won’t eat any animals.” Dad roars, “Let her starve then!” My brother and I cringe and sneak chunks of hamburg under the table to the dog.

setting sun
over the red hibiscus
a field of cows

---

About the Author

Renée Owen’s award-winning books include This One Life (Backbone Press), Alone On A Wild Coast (Snapshot Press), and Scent of the Past. . . Imperfect (Two Autumns Press).