This poem is spillover from the August 16, 2022 bonus fishbowl. It fills the "We're not in Kansas anymore." square in my 9-1-22 card for the Land of Oz Bingo fest. This poem has been sponsored by a pool with Dreamwidth user Fuzzyred. It belongs to the series Not Quite Kansas . "That Warm Family Church Potluck" [Sunday, February 10, 2019] Gideon felt happy for once, excited to get back something that he had missed from home. "Hey guys, guess what?" he said. "I got invited to a church potluck tonight -- free food and good company." Barb hissed, his tail lashing. "They don't want your company," he snarled. "They want your soul." "What?" Gideon said, baffled. "It's not a communion or anything, just that warm family church potluck like everyone has back home." "We're not in Kansas anymore, or at least, not our Kansas," Raymond reminded him. "We have to be more careful here." "It's one way that the churches recruit people," Barb said, "and they're not always careful about whether folks want to be recruited." "Oh," Gideon said, slumping. "Well, thanks for warning me away, then." "Don't worry, there are other traditions we could follow instead," said Raymond. "Sundays are sacred family time, when people don't have to work so everyone can come together to talk about the week's events." "Yeah, that sounds good," said Gideon. "We could make chili or something." "In a crockpot?" Raymond said, dryly, waving at his makeshift kitchenette. "Or did you mean to go upstairs?" "No, here is fine," said Gideon. "Anything is crock-possible!" He rummaged in the supplies that they kept downstairs. Raymond already had cans of black beans, zesty diced tomatoes, thick chunky salsa, and the spices they'd need. A quick trip upstairs turned up an onion and a couple pounds of beef stew chunks. "Will you chop the onion?" Gideon asked as he started assembling the other ingredients. "Sure, I can do that," Raymond said. Before long, everything but the salsa went into the crockpot, turned on high. "Once this cooks, I'll go back upstairs to look for toppings," said Gideon. Curious, Barb sniffed the crock. "It smells interesting?" he said. Raymond chuckled. "You haven't smelled anything yet. Good chili gets fragrant." "I will wait," Barb said. He sat down, curling his tail around his body. "While we're waiting for that to cook, let's get started on the story time," said Raymond. "This week, I stopped a pickpocket from robbing a senior citizen. I couldn't arrest him, so I just punched him in the face." Gideon laughed. "Good one," he said. "I aced my test on Friday, the one about binding runes. I think I actually like Occult Convocation better than Religious Studies back in our original world." "Well, that's good to hear," said Raymond. "Barb, what about your news this week?" "Gideon found me a medical text at the used book store," Barb said. "It is very difficult for me to read, but the pictures have been helpful." The chili was beginning to smell deliciously of onion and tomato, although the beef hadn't warmed enough to smell savory yet. "It's been a good week," Gideon said quietly. He was beginning to realize that he cared more about Sunday dinner with his family than he did about that warm family church potluck. * * * Notes: 5. Church meals Anyone else have that warm family church potluck every month or so? Everyone plans to bring a dish, side, or dessert and has a great time. 6. Sunday family dinner Sundays are sacred family time, where most people don't have to work and everyone can come together and talk about the week's events. 7. Anything is crock-possible . Bread, cake, pudding, soup, roast, pasta, what CAN'T be made in a crockpot? Chilly Day Beef Chili is among the more popular crockpot recipes .