THE JOURNEY TO a far country is come and gone, and I’m back to a quiet office, with the little bidgets and squeaks of activity at our two desks almost muffled by the deep freeze in the hall that guards the best of the garden and an imaginative collection of various foodstuffs. The harvest is in, in which I had so little part while away, but am enjoying so much now. Of particular pleasure is the once a year overabundance of basil pesto, which is what puts the little donut-shaped tortellini (called by some Venus’s belly button) up into the category where it deserves the latter name. And of course, there’s still the heap on the kitchen counter of odd sort-of-pumpkin-like squash that came curling up out of the compost in the spring and strewed its star-crossed fruits all the way from the arbor to the corn patch. We think they’re a cross between butternuts and buttercups, which last year grew together on the same fence. They’re frankly not big enough to have dallied with the behemoth Cushaws across the way. So now we’re stuck with calling them ButterButters, or Nutcups. Any thoughts?
Mystery squash in abundance
A kitchen full of bounty
Listen to or read the narrative of the latest installment of the classic Ozarks commentary by beloved Ozarks singer and storyteller Marideth Sisco, host of the long-running series, These Ozarks Hills.
my life and times 
aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh
Your writing is so graceful, my friend, a true pleasure to read.
I agree with Sarah, you do have a way of letting your words flow.
About those squash: Mysterious. Perhaps magic. Pumpkin-like. Pumpkin-like? How about Cinderella Squash?
Whatever sort of squash they are, if they cook they will make a dandy “pumpkin” pie.
Marie and Frank – They’re delicious, like sweet potatoes, but a tad sweeter. Problem is,they won’t reproduce. They grew among cucumbers, 2 varieties of summer squash and watermelons. Also they’re virtually seedless, so it’s just a one-time gift from nature in celebration of cross-pollination. I gotta tell you, though, I’m probably going to plant another fence full of butternut/buttercups next year and see if another happy accident happens.