Hubby has been bringing home corn from a buddy's garden and is suddenly interested in just how I cook my corn. I cook the corn the way an old friend and neighbor taught me:
Corn on the Cob
1. Heat a pot of water until boiling.
2. Add a tablespoon of sugar and corn to the pot.
3. Place a plate over the corn so it weighs down the corn.
4. Turn off the heat and let sit for 10 minutes.
Excellent corn every time!
Years ago, just outside our subdivision there was a small farm owned by a lovely little old lady. Mrs. Stapleton had lived on the farm for many years. The little girls and I would walk there with kitchen scraps and feed the chickens and geese. We learned all sorts of interesting farm things, where eggs and milk came from and countless gardening and canning tips.
For many years Mrs Stapleton would call me on Good Friday, "Jo-day (her voice raising on the day), can you take me to the airport? The chicks have arrived."
Off we'd go to the airport and pick up a crate of chicks. They would immediately go under the warming lamp getting some TLC after a stressful trip. Mrs. Stapleton let my girls touch the chicks, she knew that they would be gentle and understood their importance. This was her food and "pin money" for the next year, a very serious business!
Once she called me and said that her water heater had gone out. Would Hubby please get one for her? At the time he worked for Sears and didn't mind helping a neighbor out. When he arrived at her house, he was a bit surprised - not only did he have to take the new hot water heater down into the cellar but he had to take the old heater out AND install the new one. He was paid for his work - a dozen eggs!
My girls grew, and I went back to work. Sadly, I lost track of Mrs. Stapleton's daily life. When I had a chance to take a deep breath and look around - she was no longer in the neighborhood. While taking her cow from the barn to the pasture, the rope had wrapped around her. She had been pulled down and broke a leg. Mrs. Stapleton never did return to the farm. First it was the leg and then Alzheimer's took over. I never seemed to have enough time to go visit, then so much time had gone by I didn't know where she was or if she was even still alive.
It was quite a surprise to get a call one sunny afternoon, "Jo-day, can you take me North of Laurel so we can get some tomatoes to can?"
What a wonderful visit we had on the phone that day. I am forever grateful that Mrs. Stapleton remembered my number and I was home to take that call. Through the fog of Alzheimer's and years apart, on that day she was back living the days when my girls were little ones and we were good friends. That day I realized I had been as important to her as she was to me.
Just six weeks later I read her obituary in the paper. What a sweet good-bye she had given me with the phone call on that summer afternoon.
Corn on the Cob
1. Heat a pot of water until boiling.
2. Add a tablespoon of sugar and corn to the pot.
3. Place a plate over the corn so it weighs down the corn.
4. Turn off the heat and let sit for 10 minutes.
Excellent corn every time!
For many years Mrs Stapleton would call me on Good Friday, "Jo-day (her voice raising on the day), can you take me to the airport? The chicks have arrived."
Off we'd go to the airport and pick up a crate of chicks. They would immediately go under the warming lamp getting some TLC after a stressful trip. Mrs. Stapleton let my girls touch the chicks, she knew that they would be gentle and understood their importance. This was her food and "pin money" for the next year, a very serious business!
Once she called me and said that her water heater had gone out. Would Hubby please get one for her? At the time he worked for Sears and didn't mind helping a neighbor out. When he arrived at her house, he was a bit surprised - not only did he have to take the new hot water heater down into the cellar but he had to take the old heater out AND install the new one. He was paid for his work - a dozen eggs!
My girls grew, and I went back to work. Sadly, I lost track of Mrs. Stapleton's daily life. When I had a chance to take a deep breath and look around - she was no longer in the neighborhood. While taking her cow from the barn to the pasture, the rope had wrapped around her. She had been pulled down and broke a leg. Mrs. Stapleton never did return to the farm. First it was the leg and then Alzheimer's took over. I never seemed to have enough time to go visit, then so much time had gone by I didn't know where she was or if she was even still alive.
It was quite a surprise to get a call one sunny afternoon, "Jo-day, can you take me North of Laurel so we can get some tomatoes to can?"
What a wonderful visit we had on the phone that day. I am forever grateful that Mrs. Stapleton remembered my number and I was home to take that call. Through the fog of Alzheimer's and years apart, on that day she was back living the days when my girls were little ones and we were good friends. That day I realized I had been as important to her as she was to me.
Just six weeks later I read her obituary in the paper. What a sweet good-bye she had given me with the phone call on that summer afternoon.
I loved this post--I fondly remember walking over to Mrs. Stapleton's and seeing her chicks. I also remember that "farm house" smell and all of the egg cartons she had stacked by her back door--funny what bits stand out to a child.
ReplyDeleteWhat a wonderful story and wonderful memories.
ReplyDeleteWow, what memories you have brought back. We too knew Mrs. Stapleton and she was a wonderful lady. Thanks for bringing back that long ago time in all our lives.
ReplyDelete