KEEP OUT, Birthday

I was sound asleep when I heard the knock on my bedroom door.
"Hey mom, come have some barbecue, it's really good!"
I LOVE barbecue and despite switching to vegetarianism
two years ago, I was ready to fall off the carrot wagon.
I threw on my house coat, raced up the stairs and got
to the kitchen. Troy's frisbee golf team was standing
in the kitchen eating watermelon from my crystal bowl
and another batch of teens was at the dining room table.
"Where's your dad Troy?" I asked.
Troy laughed and said, "He didn't show up for his
birthday barbecue mom and we're hungry!"
I snatched my watermelon bowl out of Luke's hand
and he said, "But it's soooo good!"
I looked at the dining room table covered with
bowls of food and littered with the "KEEP OUT, Birthday"
signs I'd made the previous day.
Sometimes Terry goes overtime on his birthday spirit quest
to the ocean & I figured we'd celebrate when he returned.
Troy could see the smoke pouring out of my ears when I
saw the tall German chocolate cake with a large piece missing.
He had carefully cut around the frosting, "Happy Birthday Terry."
He said, "Mom, we are honoring dad on his birthday."
Khystian said, "Gretchen, I already showed everyone
where you tunneled in the back of the cake with a spoon."
I recognized defeat and grabbed a plate and sunk my teeth
into the tender barbecued chicken.
"Great barbecue Troy." I said.