Reminiscence

Reminiscence

It is another great day in the neighborhood! The sun is rising, the weather looks and feels good. The trees are beginning to turn colors, and you can tell that fall is in the air. Today makes me think of hot apple cider, good conversation, and my hometown. This is the season that you begin making final preparations for winter.'

Cane has to be harvested and turned into syrup. Meat has to be carefully selected, and put in the smokehouse for curing and the winter. Canning is slowly coming to an end, but you must get in those last few jars of peaches, beans and tomatoes. Of course, your jams and jellies are already looking good in those jars with the paraffin wax on top to keep them fresh.

Yes, those were hard times, but good times. Granddaddy made the best syrup, and dog candy in the world! And my Mother canned the best vegetables and made the best jam and jelly that has ever gone in your mouth. I can smell the bacon on the stove, and see mom in the kitchen making up those biscuits (blackberry jelly was my favorite with a big pot of grits on the stove, and that big old bottle of cane syrup sitting on the table.

Of course, all of that had to be washed down with some sweetened water (for the kids), and a stiff cup of black coffee (Sanka for mom and Maxwell for granddaddy). Life was hard, but life was good. No worries about what was put in the food or if you should eat it or not. If you did not grow it on your land, you worked the land on which it was grown, and knew what it had been fed. If my mind serves me correctly, we had a recycling system that worked! Uneaten food did not go to waste or to the dump. Chickens got fed. Hogs got fed, and gardens were grown. Clothes were remade for the next wearer, and what could not be worn was made into quilts and blankets.

This was the season in which you prepared for the winter. You got your winter cleaning out so that you would not be so susceptible to colds or the flu. Taking care of your body was equally important as taking care of your food needs. Winter coats were purchased or cleaned. Your new shoes were purchased – one pair for school and on pair for church. The first time I saw my shoes made was awe inspiring. My feet were measured, the material measured, then cut, then sewn together, tried on, and then the sole was added. Most comfortable shoes I have ever worn. They somehow never made it through the winter without a piece of cardboard paper being added because the stitching would either wear out or break.

Funny now, but back then, the other kids would poke fun at you by saying that your shoes were talking to you. Even funnier was that in a few days or weeks, their shoes would be talking to them too. Yes, life was hard in more ways than one, but life was also good in more ways than one.

Friends and family would come together to do the canning, carve up the cow or hog or goat, and it would be more like a celebration. The children had to help with the work, but we also got a chance to run around and play together. When the dog candy was ready, it was a fight to see who could get the most on the cane peel or stick. My Lord, they have NEVER captured that taste, and it has never been sold in the store. My mouth literally waters up each time I think about this time of year and eating granddaddy’s dog candy. Some of the neighbors made it too, but not like granddaddy.

Then there were the old fashion taffy pullings that mom would have at our house. People would come over and mom would make up different batters of taffy, and you could pull and make your own taffy. I tried over the years to carry on a lot of those old traditions, even to canning when I landed in Maryland, but like the rest of America, I wanted to get as far away from that kind of labor as I could. As my finances changed, so did my lifestyle, but the thoughts of home, and the fall or autumn as we called it still makes me homesick. And causes a small ache in my heart for the good old days!

Today, I am remembering how wonderful life was then, but I am also remembering how hard things were. The saving grace for my memories, however, is that we had each other. There was my Mother, Aunt Mozelle, granddaddy, aunts, uncles, and lots of first cousins! We did not all live in the same house, but we were never more than a stone’s throw away. When it rained or was too cold to go to church, Mother held Sunday School and church in our living room. Dinner was always prepared on Saturday or real early Sunday morning. I loved when Mother started baking for Christmas because that was the signal that fall/autumn was over, and winter was coming on!

Peace and blessings as you enjoy this wonderful autumn day during this amazing fall season!