by Kevin T McEneaney
I once called my son a little pumpkin.
He did not like that—being called little,
knowing he was much smarter than a squash.
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Pumpkins are one of the oldest known plants
in the world to be domesticated,
being native to North America,
cultivated ten thousand years ago
by native indigenous farmers.
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In Wampanoag, it was called pohpukun.
which the Pilgrims adapted as pumpkin.
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On Thanksgiving Day, we eat pumpkin pie,
enjoy its viscous texture and taste.
When I was young, I was called a pumpkin,
and could not think of a nicer nickname!
