More Zucchini Escapades

As I was working in the garden the other morning, I excitedly noticed two very red tomatoes and reached down to pick them up. To my dismay, I picked up instead a huge zucchini with two red tomatoes painted on it. I stood in the garden and laughed until I was afraid our neighbors were going to call the little me in the nice white coats.
Of course, my first reaction was to blame Kaye Palmer (who wouldn't?), so I came inside and wrote her a poem. I was perplexed when she called to tell me my poetry had touched her deeply but that she had no idea what I was talking about. Was it Marta Adair? Nope, too busy. Amy Alvord reportedly has 15 hills of zucchini this year, but she's never been involved in the war before. Probably not. Amy Raun? Nope, definitely too busy. Slowly it began to dawn on me. Our very own daughter was obviously the culprit. I wrote an addendum to the poem and gave copies of both to Katy. She took great delight in having fooled me so completely. Here are the poems, both masterpieces:
I ran to my garden intent on deducing
Just how much my dear little plants were producing.
The beans looked all beany-y,
The cukes looked just great,
The beets did beat all,
And the carrots, first rate.
The onions were stinky,
The peppers quite hale,
Banana squash looking
Like orange beached whale.
Raspberries starting,
Pumpkins and corn;
Why even the melons
Can’t make me forlorn!
But, oh, for tomatoes
We surely do long.
The vines are good sized,
And the blossoms are strong.
The cherries produce little ones that are cute,
But we are just pining for giant red fruit!
I look down at my feet, delighted to spy
Two nice ripe tomatoes, bring tears to my eye.
I reach down to pick them and utter, “My gosh!”
It seems ripe tomatoes are really just squash.
If I go on too long my point I belabor,
We’ve been had again by our relentless dear neighbor!

Our neighbor denies it,
She says ‘twasn’t she.
Oh my, I’m embarrassed
Who else could it be?
I think and I think
‘Til my thinker’s in pain ,
Who coulda done this?
Who came up the lane?
And then I remember,
That fruit seemed so gallant;
There’s only one couple
Who has so much talent!
If only I’d seen,
If only I’d caught her;
This must have been done
By our darling daughter!
How could she have done this?
What made her act so?
We’ve raised her to love us
And not be our foe.
This war has created
So many a louse,
The squash must’ve come
From her red-headed spouse!