Happy New Year!
Are you recovered from the
festivities, fuss and fun of the holidays yet? At our house, the tree is down,
the decorations have been put away, and even the lights and garland that so
recently festooned our front porch have been tucked away for another
year.
We do vary our habits some from
when we were first married. We used to follow my mother’s tradition—the tree
stayed up until after Epiphany (which is today). But my beloved got called back
to work a week early, which was for this past Monday, and so we decided to put
everything away before he went back.
I spent a lot of time thinking
about traditions over the last two weeks. I was very lucky this year in that I
got to see all of my children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren, as well as
my brother and all of his family over the holidays. That
made my Christmas. Watching the children put me in mind of Christmases
past, all those many years ago when I had been a child myself.
I was pleased to see, at my
brother’s house, that he still displays the “Christmas candle” that my father
used to light only on Christmas Eve. It used to be, and still is, displayed in
an evergreen wreath that sits flat on the table. During those long ago
Christmases, it was surrounded by 4 red wooden “Santa boots”, about two and a
half inches high and an inch in diameter, that would be filled with that special
Christmas hard candy, or salted nuts. I came into possession of the boots a few
years ago when my sister passed away. I was the youngest and had lost out when
those treasures had originally been “distributed” some forty years
ago.
I was also thinking about the
food related traditions we have. I know I mentioned before Christmas that one of
our family’s customs was the big Christmas Day breakfast. We enjoyed my
brother’s variation of that again this year. He makes a delicious brunch on
Boxing Day (the day after Christmas). This year’s menu was side bacon, peameal
bacon, fried eggs, toast, breakfast potatoes, fruit salad and cheese blintzes
served with blueberry sauce. This year there were 11 of us partaking of this
feast. It was very good—both the company, as well as the food.
Over the last couple of weeks I
spent more time than usual thinking about the way that food plays into our
family’s rituals, but I had a good reason for that. This past September, I
underwent laparoscopic gall bladder surgery. As a result, this Christmas was the
first one in four years that I was able to enjoy the foods being offered. Not
that I ate a lot, but what I did eat tasted really good and, for a change, made
my tummy very happy instead of miserable.
Does food matter to you as a
part of your mores and traditions, above and beyond providing nutrition? I’ve
discovered over the years that some people care more for and about food than
others do. Despite my recent recovery, I didn’t eat a lot over the holidays. I
don’t eat a lot, period. I think it’s a sign of getting older. Neither my
husband nor I eat nearly as much as we used to. But food still plays an
important role in our memories and customs, and I wonder if that is just us, or
if it’s universal.
When David and I were first
dating in our teens, there was a grocery store close to where he lived. That
store had an on-site bakery. One of our favorite things to do on a Saturday
afternoon in the summer was to have a “picnic” in the park. We’d stop at the
store, and for not much coin, purchase a fresh loaf of bread, a one pound piece
of Polish sausage, and a cold bottle of soda. That was our repast for the event,
and no, we didn’t use cutlery or dishes.
Day to day, we don’t fuss over
our menu. We prefer comfort food to fancy, although my beloved accuses his
weight gain, since he stopped smoking more than a decade ago, on my good
cooking.
Looking back, it’s the meals
enjoyed with families and friends that stand out in our memories,
times when we’ve gathered and
celebrated—and shared. I might not be able to recall what was served, but I can
remember, fondly, the convivial atmosphere in which it was consumed.
Love,
Morgan
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