Confessing Deliciously

It was a snowy Christmas Eve afternoon at Miss Maloney’s house. Her grand-daughter and grand-son were racing throughout the house releasing their excitement of Christmas through their voices. Miss Maloney was drowned by the noise of the screaming children and the thick smell of honey bake ham surrounded her. Her son, George, admired her glistening silver hair as it reflected the light of the glowing fire back. Miss Maloney was gazing the fire . George was looking at his mom thinking of how much she has aged. He noticed she looked disturbed or as if she was not all there.

“Are you alright, mom?” asked George.

“I think the ham is done.” She replied with a fake smile not answering George’s question.
Her eyes were glazed over as if something inside of her was dying to get out. Miss Maloney limped into the kitchen as if she was a 60-year-old women trapped inside of a 90-year-old women’s body. George looked at his wife asking with his face “what had just happened?”

“Dinner is ready.” Miss Maloney mumbled.

The two children screamed all the way to their seats at the table. For an hour no one said a word. Between the sweet taste of sweet potatoes and the flickering warm fire everybody was satisfied.
As the plates of food began to decrease size, Miss Maloney’s grand-son asked,
“Do we have a Grandpa?”

Miss Maloney new this day would come. Her eyes shot open as she stared into the cut up Ham leg. Tommy, George, George’s wife, and Miss-Maloney’s grand-daughter all stared into miss Maloney’s gloomy eyes as if they all had the same question.
“Of course you don’t.” She said in a sarcastic voice.
“Well where is he?” George asked.
Miss Maloney didn’t reply as a she smiled and began to eat again. Everybody slowly began to eat the delicious leftover scraps off the honey baked ham in front of them. The room got more and more silence as the evening went on. They all ate pie and potatoes and beans and everything Miss Maloney could have ever cooked out of the ingredients form her pantry without even saying a word to each other.
They all sat down near the fire and then began to talk. Both of the kids always got to open one gift before they went to sleep.
As unlimited amount of paper began flying off the presents Miss Maloney looked at George and said, “Even after thirty years of being in the freezer your fathers leg tasted great after being honey baked, don’t you think?”
The room went dead silent as the air born wrapping paper crashed against the floor. Miss Maloney giggled and everyone’s face, except hers, turned ghost white.