Heritage Hints From Mama #1
Getting In Touch With Your Living Ancestors-
My granddaughters, Katy Rose and Elle, with my father.
Hello from the Deep South, home of magnolias, sweet tea and sweltering hot summers! I am Christy’s Mama and have been invited to share a little wisdom gleamed from my years of experience. Some of it may come in handy and others may just be a little bit of rambling thoughts from my cobwebbed brain. You can take either with a grain of salt. If you have any comments or suggestions along the way, they will be welcomed. Remember, I am getting old so coddle me a bit. Well, here goes!
Today I want to talk about our living ancestors. Do you have a grandparent, older aunt, or uncle living? If so, call today and set up a time for a visit. It doesn’t have to be in person if they live a little far off from you. A phone call will do nicely. I’m sure you will be pleasantly surprised by the outcome and I’m sure your relative will be more than willing to talk with you. They are some of your family’s most precious resources- connect with them!
Is there a favorite food you enjoyed as a child that was prepared by someone in your family? Have you ever wondered about how family traditions started? Or have you ever thought about tracing your family tree? Your older relatives are the easiest way to solve these mysteries and sadly, once these relatives pass on, their knowledge goes with them.
Take a week or so, to think about growing up and some of the memories that come to mind. Make a list of questions you would like answered. You will probably be surprised at the things you think of. Christy hears of so many people that enjoyed a certain food when they were small and long for just one more taste of it. Most of the time it is an everyday food that was prepared from memory and just can’t quite be duplicated. All it would have taken was a few minutes to watch it being prepared and taking a few notes. But when that relative passed on, the recipe was lost forever. Don’t let this happen to you.
If you have ever thought of taking up genealogy as a hobby, your relatives are your best and easiest by far resource for getting a great start. Ask about grandparents, parents, aunts, uncles, cousins, etc. Take detailed notes and list any names, locations, birth dates, marriages, deaths, etc. Let your relative talk about whatever crosses their mind. You will learn much more than names and dates. You will learn about the where and why that made your family what it was.
If you are able to, take older relatives back to where they lived and went to school, church, etc. It is amazing the stories that they will recall. I have done this with my mother who is 80 years young and even though I had asked questions a thousand times with no answers, it was amazing some of the things she remembered when taken back to the places where she had carried on her day to day life.
Also ask your older relatives if they have any old family pictures. Sometimes a picture is worth a thousand words. By sure and list who the people are in the picture. Believe me, I am speaking from experience. You will probably forget Aunt Sophie’s sister’s name and where they were when the picture was taken. Nowadays, it just takes a quick trip and a little cash to get a picture copied. The old pictures don’t mean a thing if you don’t know who is in them. Old pictures are some of my most prized possessions and I’m sure they will become some of yours too!
To get you started, take a minute and think about what you would have liked to know from relatives who have passed on. Then, you may just realize the importance of taking advantage of the resources you have before they are gone. We are all busy and even though we have good intentions, it seems like we have a hard time getting around to some of the important aspects of our lives. Please make an appointment to take care of a little family business before it is too late. This is just a little advice from me to you.
I’d love to hear some of the wisdom or family history you have uncovered just by taking the time to talk with your living relatives. Please feel free to chat with me in the comments section below. I’ll read them all and look forward to answering!
I’ll be talking with you from time to time but until then, remember Mama loves you and I’ll see you soon!
~Mama
Me and my husband, Bill (Bill and Janice Davis)
“There are only two lasting bequests we can give our children – one is roots, and the other, wings.”
~Hodding S. Carter
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Posted by Christy Jordan
on Jul 19 2010. Filed under Heritage Hints.
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Thank you for writing a post that can really mean the world to so many people!
Gratefully,
your second favorite daughter
Don’t sell yourself short. You know you are my favorite oldest daughter! Thanks so much for letting me write. I loved to write in high school and have not taken much time to write since. I am having a ball doing it again. Remember Mama loves you!!!!!!!!!! and I am proud of you!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Very nicely done Mama! Looking forward to more columns from you.
My dad is 84 years old and he regaled me with the tale of how he got his drivers license. He had just gotten out of the Navy and tried to take the test 3 different times. He failed each time. He went one more time and told them that he lost his license when his ship went down at Pearl Harbor (He WAS there.. after the battle) They gave him a license. He has got a lot of repentin to do lol.
> I remember asking my grandmother about marrying Grandpa. He asked her to marry him when she was 16; she said yes because she knew she was too young and her mother would not give permission. But, her mother did, so they married. She told me this story in a bemused fashion 60 years or so later. I am glad of all the conversations I had with my grandparents.
What a wonderful, wonderful thing to do! I thought of doing all this….too late. Folks, take heart, listen to what is being said, and don’t wait too long. No one has the promise of the next second….and it could just mean the difference between having something precious to help with memories and appetites, or the thought of losing something for all time. Thanks Christy….and thanks to your mom too!
My mamaw made the BEST potato salad in the world. I watched her do it and she tried to tell me how, but I just couldn’t master it. I think she just had the special touch and now she’s gone and all I can do is remember how it tasted.
Well said Christie’s Mom. My grandmother was into genealogy both her family and my grandfather’s. She wasn’t very organized but kept everything and she loved talking and meeting new people. And I watched growing up, listened to them talk and cook and care (someone had to right?) and really miss them. My Mom’s generation didn’t really get into it…the family get-togethers and such as much. It was a different time with no or little technology or so fast paced and with much larger families. Love the picture as you are leaning toward each other.
I can’t stress enough how important this is. I am 79 years old and I have tried to keep a log of things in the past. My children do realize the importance but still they don’t know just how much this will,mean later. I try to talk to them about it but as you might expect, the interest doesn’t last long. My wife is 76 and we are the youngest in each of our families….the memories of our past will go with us when we go.
Ken write your memories down. I plan to write my memories as I have younger siblings and they don’t remember the things I do. I have younger sisters and I talk to them about things that happened when I was a child, and they ask me to write these things down so they can read them as they weren’ even born. I have told my grandchildren a few stories of my childhood and they always say, “Tell us another story grandma.” My youngest grandson once asked me if I was as old as dirt.
I am so glad to read that you read my article. It means so much to me. Don’t give up talking. I can still remember things my grandmother and grandfather said to me even though they probably thought that I was not listening. Memories are so very important and have effects on who we become. Everyone please take time to listen to your elders! You will not regret doing so but will regret not doing it in years to come. Thanks again Ken for taking time out of your day to join me! Mama (Janice)
My grandson’s seventh grade class worked on this very thing this spring. They asked we grandparents to write about how things were when we were growing up. They asked a series of questions to give people an idea of what they wanted from us. I enjoyed doing mine and the kids loved hearing about what to them seemed eons ago. They were open mouthed when I talked about nickel ice cream cones and coke from a soda fountain at our local drug store. Saturday afternoon at the movie was a ten cent admission and you could stay for both features on that one thin dime. I remembered passenger trains, canning our food for winter, and roller skates that fastened onto your shoes. It was a fun project for me as well as my grandson so maybe your local schools would like to try it.
I am so glad to hear that some of the teachers realize what a treasure this will be to children in years to come. I hope that my grandchildren’s teachers will do this. Two of my grandson’s have expressed an interest in genealogy and I have printed off pictures of great great grandfathers for them. I always list the relation that the person is to my grandson at the bottom. That is a tip that a friend of mine who has been a great help to me in research for my family. The other tip he gave me is to always put a person in the picture who is an ancestor whenever you photograph a grave and let the tombstone show the encription in the photo. Thanks for your comment!
Well done, Ms. Janice! There’s certainly no doubt where Christy received that special talent that she has for putting her heart on paper! My favorite story from Daddy is when he was 15, he and his buddy decided to “hobo” from north Louisiana to the 1934 Chicago World’s Fair. They rode the rails with very little in their pockets, but plenty of adventure in their spirits. One evening after walking around until they were about to drop, they found their way back to their motel, which was actually a small cave. They’d managed to bring back a couple of pieces of corn bread in their jacket pockets that they’d hoped to have for the next day…except the rats were hungry too and that took care of that. As they finally started making their way back home, the 2 boys parted ways. Daddy was alone, hungry, and still about 100 miles from home. He laid himself down across the railroad tracks and was just going to “end it all” when an elderly black man found him, fed him and helped send him on his way. The times were simpler, but the human heart has always been able to mete out so much kindness – something Daddy certainly never forgot!
That is a wonderful story.
Thanks for the encouragement! I really enjoyed the story. Boy, you can sure see that times have changed. My daddy talks about riding his bike to visit old friends after they had moved. It would have been about 15 or 20 miles. Could you imagine a mother giving them permission to do that? He got hungry on the way and asked a lady if he could pick some apples off her tree. He still talks about how sweet the apples were. I think the hospitality make them sweeter. As they say, those were the days! Janice
Hi Mama,
I enjoyed reading your post. I have so many memories about my MaMaw. She was the dearest woman I have ever known and I miss her terribly. I never heard her say a mean thing about anyone. She wouldn’t join in on the gossip that sometimes went on around the kitchen table after dinner. She would just say “bless their hearts” and start with clearing the dishes. MaMaw made a cake every year at Christmas that was to die for. She called it appropriately “Christmas Cake”. It was a chocolate layer cake with a pineapple filling. I have always regretted not getting the recipe. She died when I was 15. I did ask family members years later for the recipe, but no one had it. MaMaw’s “Christmas Cake” is now just a childhood memory. I like to think she took the recipe with her to heaven.
I sometimes wonder if we had the recipe if it would taste the same. The love would be missing. I would love to eat a meal at my grandmothers just one more time. We don’t realize how great the meal tastes until we not longer have it. I hope that I have caused everyone to take a nice trip back in time. That is the hope of my posts and, of course, letting me ramble a bit. Take care, Love, Mama
I learned so much about my Mama over the years. She was one of nine children, who worked the fields and when their crops were taken care of, her Dad would farm them out to the neighbors. There wasn’t any money for toys so she made her a doll from a flat rock and painted a face with poke berries and wrapped it in an old rag for a blanket. She’s gone now but her stories will be with me forever. I did get her recipes for all my favorite foods but no one can make biscuits like Mama.
My grandmother made me a doll out of a rolled up towel. Even though I had lots of dolls, this is one I still remember playing with. I think I felt like I had went back in time a little. I still have a little rubber doll that my grandmother made an outfit out of the colored part of a bread sack. She used rubber bands to hold the clothes on. Do you see this Christy??? Thanks for the comment! Mama
Thank you Christy’s momma.
We just got back from a funeral for a man that attends our church. He was 64 or 65 and seemed to be in great health. He was very active and worked a lot, kept a beautiful garden which he loved. He would keep everyone in his family supplied with fresh vegetables. Friday he picked some fresh peas for his mother (who is 84 and can work the socks off me). She asked him how he was doing and he said great. Saturday morning his wife thought he was sleeping a little late, checked and found him dead in their bed. We just don’t know when it’s someone’s time to go. Take advantage now of remembering to tell them you love them, hug and kiss them and make sure you ask about their childhood memories and memories of older adults long gone.
One of my hobbys is genealogy and so many times wish I could ask my mom or dad something about their past that I didn’t think to ask while they were here.
What a lovely, and thoughtful thing to do. This is what I so love about Southern people it is the value that we place on tradition and family. You have wonderful and useful tips and I appreciate reading them. In my family my aunt ask each family member (and being from the South I mean all my cousins as well) for a favorite recipe and a story about that recipe. She put together a Combs family cook book with so many great stories about those who have gone on. I love going to the Old Home Place and the cemetary that is there. It is so good to get in touch with your roots and makes me greatful for those who gave me such a great life.
Now that is great idea for a very special Christmas gift. It would take some time but not much money and would mean the world to everyone. Thanks for the great comment. Mama
I sure hope the younguns (well, younguns to me…that is…lol…) take this post to heart….and soak up all the special things only the older adults in their family can share.
Thanks for such a thoughtful post. Ü
Thanks Mama for sharing your heart. I have been interested in both sides of my family for a while now. Two cousins started the family tree on my dad’s side and traced us back past the Civil War. That was really interesting since my dad had grown up in an orphanage after his mama died and his papa couldn’t take care of all the kids. Since he was little and couldn’t work, he got ‘given away’. I had the best mammaw who was really his foster mom. My mom’s side has lots of roots and we sat for hours every summer listening to my granddad tell stories. I started scrapbooking about 4 years ago and have been making one of my parents’ young lives, courtship and marriage. They were married 56 years before we lost my dad 5 years ago. Family is such a sweet gift God gives us. It touchs my heart when I hear of someone who wasn’t blessed with the roots and I wonder how they ever got their wings.
My husband had a similar special “grandma”. We visited a cemetery out in the country to take a picture of my husband’s grandmother’s grave. He called his mom to find out exactly where the grave was after we spent awhile hunting for it. He told the story of how she always made cookies for them when they went to visit. He also told about how nice she was to them. When we found the grave, the dates didn’t match his story! She died several years before my husband was born. The lady he remembered was his grandfather’s second wife. What a great testament to her when the grandkids didn’t know that she was a step grandparent! She must have been a lovely lady! Mama
I treasure my family trees from my fathers side & my mother’s side. My great aunts on each side put it together and my generation has added the newer additions to the family. I made copies for my grandchildren that they took to school with their names added on. I am 69 yrs young and I’m still adding newborns! This is why I am putting together a cookbook so my children & grandchildren can read my recipes. I won’t publish it as I have already published one book for them. MEMORIES are a beautiful thing to leave our loved ones…..
By the way, your picture is beautiful and sooo young looking!!!!!
Christy made a couple of family recipes for our family’s Christmas gifts before she started Southern Plate. This first one had her daddy and my wedding picture on the cover! Everyone loved the cookbooks. I know that the grandchildren will love them in years to come. Thanks for the “young” comment. It made my day! Mama
Your advice is so important. After my mother died, I spent weeks long visits with my father over a three year period and sat with a big notebook and asked him questions about his youth and family members. I was 71 years old and had never heard many of his stories. He died when he was 96 and I am sure he had fun telling me his memories. The stories also straightened me out with some of my family tree questions. Can’t believe how much my family never thought to discuss while I was growing up.
It is amazing how much research time a few minutes with your elders can save you. They can name at least one generation back with locations of birth, deaths, and cemeteries. Don’t discount how important this can be. Joy and I have both benefited from it. Mama
Thank you “Miss Janice” for making me remember how much my grandparents meant to me. I spent every minute with my grandparents that my mom would allow. When we all gathered there for Sunday dinner, I was always in the kitchen with my grandmother while all the other children were outside playing. She would let me do easy things, like beat the eggs for some dish she was making-anything to make me feel like I was a part of the preparation. I learned many things from her. When I spent Saturday nights with them, my grandaddy would stay up after grandmother went to bed, and I of course, had to be up with him. We always watched “Gunsmoke” and then we went to bed .Both of them to be in their mid 90″s and I cherish every memory I have of them. Thanks again.
Your comment helped me to remember doing the same thing. My grandmother, who lived next door, would always let me help. I saw her beating egg whites by hand for a meringue and wanted to give it a try. I found out reall quick that it wasn’t as easy as I thought it would be. Needless to say, I always use an electric mixer for that these days but I always remember giving it a try at Mama Reed’s house. Thanks for your comment! Mama
Ms. Janice that brought back memories of when I was a young girl. Mama would put the egg whites on a big platter, and I would take a fork, tilt the platter and as the whites slide down the platter, I would whip them back up the platter until a frosting was made. Its the only way we had to make a frosting for the many cakes mama made. Back then you made do with what you had.
I remember my Great Grandmother telling me of her growing up years. I was 19 when she passed away and how I wish I had all the stories written down while fresh in my mind. In later years ( my late 40′sw ) I became interested in genealogy and what a treasure those stories would be. I remember bits and pieces but that is all. I asked my Great Aunt about them about 10 years ago and she could not remember all of her moms stories either. So they are lost to the future generations. I just lost my mother in May to Parkinsons and I inherited a treasure of memories of my grandparents and great grandparents. Mom was big into tracing family history.;l I never realized just how much mom had gotten over the years. I even found an envelope containing my grandmothers hair from her first haircut in the early 1900s. I now know just how my dad got his nickname. I had asked dad a few years ago and he told me who nicknamed him but not how they came to call him that name.
One way to learn a lot about a grandparent or great grandparent if they are living is through a Journal Jar. My granddaughter gave me one a few years ago . I am still working on it. My daughter bought a journal book and then printed out all kinds of questions. Eash day or when ever I have a few minutes I pull a question out of the jar , paste it into the journal and answer it . She did this for both sets of grandparents and also her great grandparents. We found moms journal all done a few weeks back in helping dad go through moms things. What a treasure for my granddaughter to have. It tells my moms life story. Now to just find the journal that dad did. Mom put it somewhere and we have not found it yet. Her is a site that gives a lot of questions for a journal jar. http://christmas.organizedhome.com/printable/adult-journal-jar
They make a great Christmas gift.
Family history is wonderfu. I have found out through my research that on moms side I an related to Johnny Chapman ( aka Johnny Appleseed) and on my dads side am related to Princess Di. You never know who you may be related to.
This is a great idea Chris . I am so glad that your mom will be doing this. Will be fun reading.
Karan, thank you so much for the link to the journal jar! I think my mother especially will like this! Daddy…….? not so much!
My parents are 80 and 79 and there are still so many things I don’t know. Things I would love to know. There is no time like the present to ask! Daddy has done a lot of research about his family; but, I don’t know that much about Daddy as a boy. He didn’t like to talk much as I was growing up. Now he talks up a storm; but, still not much about him……..his likes, wants, ideas, his life as a boy, etc. Maybe the questions in the journal jar will get him going!
Christy’s Mama, thank you so much for such a lovely article. I can see where Christy gets her gift of gab and love of people….not to mention her yummy recipes! You both make my days brighter! I look forward to reading more about and by you!
Boy, you are giving me lots of ideas for meaningful Christmas gifts with your comments. A journal jar would also be a great idea. I’ll just have to visit that website and print some off. I need to get started while my grandchildren are still young. Thanks for your comment! Mama
Ms. Janice you are so right. I have been doing the family genealogy for 42 years, talk to the older generation while they are still living. I did and now many of them are gone.
All three of us children were told story’s about our parents past. Very little was written down. We have family photographs going back to the early 1900. a couple maybe very late 1890′s. Only a couple have a name or a date. My fathers mother was from New Orleans, born in the old French quarter. He showed us the house where my Grand mother was raised. What little we could see it was built like a fortress with high walls and a heavy gate but yet still right on the street.. My mother was always going to wright a family history but never got around to it. The women when I growing up always gathered and canned anything that didn’t move. All had some specialty that was brought to family gatherings and high holidays, Christmas and Thanksgiving especially. So much has been lost. I am trying to get the new generations to document as much as they can. My sister is about the last of the bunch to cook like we grew up with.
so quickly life goes by, and so goes the older generation until one day you realize YOU ARE the older generation, and if you don’t know it, then who is going to tell it????????????????where you came from, how you got to the part of the country you are in now, and what all happened to your family along the way. there is a story between the hyphen on the tombstones, and it’s sad if you didn’t get to know it before it was too late. i was fortunate, my mother did a lot of family history before she died, i learned thru reading this that i come from a good stock of people, hard working, God fearing family and neighbor loving people. i am so proud of who i come from. yes, you need to find out who you are and who you came from before it’s too late !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
one more quick story- i learned that my g. grandmother got married and she had 16 petticoats on !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! can you imagine???? and my grandaddy who died in 1918 had the first wreath that was ever put on a grave in the cemetary he was buried in– it was all greenery, no flowers but it was the first wreath ever brought to that cemetary. neat, huh?????
I lost my precious aunt several weeks ago, now my daddy, who is 80, and two older cousins in their 90′s are all that’s left of that generation. I feel like I need to find out as much as I can. Here in the south, family and traditions are so much a part of our way of life that you take things for granted. But now, I feel a need to find out what I can from Daddy. I want to pass it on to my grandchildren. Going to make some lemonade and go sit down with Daddy and have a glass with him while I listen to his life and hear him talk about my grandparents and their parents. He’s the last tie to those generations. Thanks Christy’s mom! Look forward to your next post!!
That may be the best glass of lemonade you ever taste! The company we share lemonade with makes it sooo sweet. Have a glass for me! Mama
As I’ve written before, Mom died died when I was 5 and I knew nothing of my maternal side and very little of my paternal side. Due to Ancestry.com, I’ve found the last living 1st cousin of my Mom.. I found a man in California who turned out to be her son. His Mom lives in N.C ( my original home state) and I live in New Jersey. I’ve answers to questions that I’ve had my whole life.
Mama, thanks for the words of encouragement. We love Chrissy like a sister and now, we love you!
Absolutly delightful! Watch out Christy, your mama may need a blog of her own. I loved reading your advice and wish only that someone had given me this advice when I was younger and my “elders” were still with me. In 2008 when my mother died at 92 my brother and I sat looking through boxes of old photos, not knowing who the people were and where they were. It was devastating. My parents grew up in S. GA as children of share crop farmers so there are many similarities in our southern roots. I look forward to your future posts and thank you for them.
Pleased to meet you Janice ; )
Wonderful advice!
I know how very proud you must be in all of your lovely daughter’s accomplishment’s.
I’ve so enjoyed her family stories and the recipe’s that have been passed down to her. Most of them are so familiar as I too am a southern belle. A Georgia peach to be exact. Hey, we’re practically neighbors. And I do love some good ol’ southern cooking. Although I have to limit myself these day’s. I just can’t keep my girlish figure eating fried chicken and biscuit’s and gravy like I used to. So I love to pop in Southern Plate and see what’s cooking and just drool . And ever so often I’ll try a recipe and I have yet to be disappointed. Yummy!!! Just answer me this… how do you stay so thin? Why if I ate food like this everyday I’d be as big as Aunt Pitty-Pat.
Oh I’m sorry I meant Aunt Sophie. I do have a Aunt Sophie who is 86 year’s young. I think I’ll give her a call. Thank’s ! I’ll look forward to your future post.
Blessings to you and your family,
Sheila
You know Christy married a Georgia peach and he is a true peach! I thank you so much for the thin comment. I told Christy this morning that I need to lose 20 pounds. It is always a struggle, isn’t it? I cook every night and usually have a full meal. I eat on a small Corelle plate and try my best not to get second helpings! Give your Aunt a call. You will not be sorry! Mama
These are such wise words. I have lost both of my parents, all of my grandparents, and many of my aunts and uncles. There is nobody left to ask and I so regret I never did this when I was younger because, while I didn’t care much about it back then, I do now. Good advice.
Thank you so much for this new addition at SP. You should be real proud because your daughter is already wise beyond her years and I know where she gets it. I got into genealogy in my later years which most people do when they retire, well that is far too late to glean that wonderful information of yesteryear. My mom’s baby sister and the last living member of the family of 8 is 85 and has Alzheimers now and gone is any chance of learning anything more. The point is that it’s the younger generation that must get into family history before it is too late. It should even be a course in high school, don’t wait until retirement because by then you could be in poor health and not even be able to travel around to see relatives who live in other states or provinces. Make it a part of your yearly vacations it could be very rewarding.
Looking forward to posting #2… thanks Janice.
Hi Christy’s Mama,
My mom is 87 years old and has just finished her second book that she has done for each of us and all the great grands. I helped her by typing and copying the first one called Magnolia Dreams. The new one will be our Christmas present from her. It is called I Remember. She is big in to genealogy. We have both sides of my family traced way back. Mother loves this and she works on helping others with their family genealogy when she is ask. One of the things that we did for her 80th birthday was help collect some of our family type stores and recipes. I have my grandmother Strickland’s gunger bread recipe since we did that. I also have a bunch of other family recips that would have been lost to our family if we had not done that. Oh by the way the gunger bread came out of the depression and it uses syrup for sweetner. My brother and my first cousin use to race to her home to get to eat the most of this sweet. I look forward to more from you and the ideas.
Annette
Thank you for sharing some of your wisdom with us! Everything you said is so true, once their gone the information is also unless is documented by someone. I’ve also found out what also is needed and requested by physician’s nowadays is medical information from generations past. We all just need to keep a journal and pass it down from one generation to another, each adding their info also. Times are changing so much and families are not like they use to be, so for the past generations history to be kept it must be documented.
You and your husband make a handsome couple! I also noted while looking at the photo that you both are leaning toward each other, that tells alot about ya’ll as a couple and how much love is shared between you two! We are so thankful for Christy and now your included also. Again, thanks, please keep posting and I hope you have a blessed day!!
My grandmother was the dearest soul on earth. How i wish now that I had taped or written down some of her stories. Growing up in a very small town our front yard in the evenings was the gathering place for a lot of our older neighbors. There was Papa Gale and Papa Rice (not relatives just what we called them) and oh the stories they could tell us and the wisdom they shared. I have told my kids how much they have missed not having the older people that I knew growing up. I think a lot of the younger generation do not know how to talk with older people. What a shame.
Just last week i went on short trip to kentucky, and illinois to visit grandparents, they had so many stories to tell, and one memory would trigger another. but what upsets me the most is i wish i would have thought to record them, because i can retail the stories , but i may not remember the small details that made them so special for me as i was hearing them. I may not get another chance, but i hope i do. thanks for sharing with us.
I love to record also. Just think how precious it will be to hear their voice again. I hope that you do have another chance with them. Take care, Mama
My own grandmothers sister is still living and I am 60 years old. I very much enjoy visiting with her and she relishes talking to me about my roots. She is still very sharp and drives her own car. Recenty she took me for a ride and showed me where my grandmother was born, where she went to school and helped me to know the kind person that she was. You see my paternal grandmother had passed on long before I was born so I never knew her. I cherish the times I am fortunate enough to have with this great aunt of mine.
I have some old Swedish recipes from my Aunt. Her mother came over to America from Sweden on a boat. (This would be my grandmother).
Peppakakor Cookies …something she used to make and mail to us kids. They were rolled real thin and would arrive in pieces half the time.
Cardamon Bread…cardamon seeds… used alot in Swedish baking…yummy.
And can’t forget her Spritz cookies she made at Christmas time.
And her Thumb Cookies.
I have these recipes. She fussed alot with her baking and they take time to make, but she sure was a fabulous cook. I have great memories of her.
My children had a class assignment to have grandparents fill out a questionnaire about their lives. I’ve saved it b/c it is in their handwriting. Both kids are in their late 30’s now. The information helped me when I started researching both of their families.
Before I was into computers and genealogy, I wrote my grandmother and grandmother in law asking about their parents, brothers, sisters, grandparents or other relatives, when and where they were born, when they died and where they are buried. I saved those letters. It was like a gold mine when I started the research. I tell people to do this now while their relatives are alive b/c when they are gone you will wish you had asked. Also you will have this information written in their handwriting.
I am a new reader but lover already of SouthernPlate.com, and this post (like most of the ones I’ve read here so far!) got me shaking my head yes, lol!
I agree that it is important to collect family history, any way that you can. Whether it’s hearing stories from your relatives, reading old letters or even the backs of old photographs, watching home movies if you’re lucky enough to have had a family member who recorded history in that way, or even searching through an old recipe box or two like my mom had, (you won’t believe some of the things you find in recipe boxes, besides the beloved recipes themselves! I found a love letter from my mom to my dad before they were married but after he went off to war (WWII), war ration books, soap coupons, vaccination records, favorite poems/quotes….my mom’s recipe boxes were obviously her go-to for lots of things besides solving the question of what to make for dinner that night!) there is priceless value in learning about your people and loving that they were there before you.
My mom and dad were both great cooks. My family is Italian on both sides but from different parts of that country. So the cooking traditions when I was growing up varied. And ~ lucky for me ~ both my mom and dad were vocal about what they cooked and how. So I learned a lot along the way. We had the same traditional foods served on specific days and holidays, and most of the time, I had to beg for my mom or dad to actually write a recipe down for me to save! But man, I’m glad I begged, lol! One of the last recipes handed down to me from my dad is for Pasta Fagiole, which was his specialty. He would make great pots of it and invite the whole neighborhood practically to come and eat. Accompanied by fresh, crusty Italian loaves with lots of good, melty butter, fresh fruit and sherbet for dessert, it was always a magical meal and now, a magical memory of sweet times long past.
A few weeks or so before my dad passed, he came over to my house and we had Pasta Fagiole Class….he spent the morning and afternoon teaching me how to do it right. And I wrote down what he said, what he recommended and what he didn’t, and that page in my own cooking book is now most prized, without a doubt.
I am so enjoying reading everyone’s recollections. Thank you all for your heart thoughts and for touching mine!
I am so glad to hear that you had that last memory of your dad. Family stories are connected to the food we eat a lot of the time. I know that every family gathering was connected to food when I grew up. I have family pictures of all ten of my grandmother’s children when we had a reunion at a state park when I was about 6 years old. It seems that I can remember going to it but I’m not sure. We had a lot of family meals and gathering when I was young. Thanks for reading Southern Plate and welcome to our family! Mama
Hi Christy’s mama. I too am working on the same thing with my mother who is 92 years young. She has lost some of her memory and I am trying to write as much down as I can. I know what you mean about recipes. My mother-n-law passed away in 2005 just shy of turning 98 years young and she used to make tea cakes for my husband. I watched over and over but did not write it down. But you know those folks baked things. It was a lot of this, a little that, a pinch of this and it turned out great. I have tried over and over with no luck yet on duplicating hers. When, and if I do, I am going to write it down for my children. I am also starting a recipe file of the things my mother used to cook that was from either her memory or from a cook book. What better gift that can be passed down to other generations. Looking forward reading yours and keep up the good work.
Thank you so much for posting this. I have been working on my family history for a while now. Please everyone talk to your elders. It is the best way to find out everything and write all the names that they tell you down. I have been searching census for my relatives. From 1790 till 1920. We also have been visiting cemeteries and taking pictures of the headstones to go along with names. I wish I had real pictures of my family. I have located several generations and now having trouble locating some of my husband’s family. It has been so exciting finding where everyone came from and where they lived. I do remember the food that my grandmothers made when I was little. my mamaw always had a pan of biscuits on the stove and she made a great pinepapple pudding. My great-grandmother made the best fresh apple cake and the prize was to find the broken egg shell. Some how a pieces of an egg shell was always in the cake. Cherish the memories that brought us to where we are now.
A friend who has helped me research our family suggested that we always pose with the tombstone so that we know which side of the family the deceased family member belongs to. My husband is in his family tombstones and I am in mine. Then if young relatives come across the picture they will have an idea of which side the relatve belongs to. I hope I have made sense, I am working fast before the baby wakes up. Take care! Janice
We have a family reunion coimg up and it is at my great aunts house. I eas thinking of not going bit after reading really want to now. For my daughter how often do you get to meet a great great aunt. Thank you for helping me decied to go. We are all the way up in Michigan and I just love southern plate you feel like my family at times.
You will definitely not regret going to your reunion but would regret not going. Take lots of pictures with the younger generation with the older relatives. Always have the younger ones with the older ones in the same picture. It helps the younger ones connect with their elders. Enjoy! and let us know how it goes. Janice
I enjoyed your mother’s message and was a lot of food for thought. I am a grandmother of 15 and great-grandmother of 8…one Christmas our family garthered around the table after brunch and gifts and had my dad sit at the head of the table and each family member had brought some questions with them to ask him.A granddaughter had just gotten a new video camera for Christmas and recorded it.My dad passed away 2 years ago and this video is a treasured memory and will be nice for the younger members of the family years from now.I enjoy Southern Plate and all that you share with us.
That is a great idea! My dad’s memory is not so good but I have talked with him in previous years and have those memories. Thanks for enjoying Southern Plate. Janice
I am late in putting in my 2 cents worth. First of all , I have a question for you,
Would you share Mom duty with me concerning Christy?? I do love her so very much. You are a young Momma and Grandmother if your Mother is 80. I am not young but I sure am young at heart and mind. You gave some good advice and I hope the youngsters out there take heed. I wish I had written down all the stories my Grandmother told me about the family as I was growing up. I have done research on my Mother’s side of the family who are McCarter’s and they came from Scotland and settled near Gatlinburg. My Great Grandmother is buried on Federal land. My Grandmother was such a wonderful cook and doubt see ever saw a recipe. She made the best peach butter and Corn Relish that I still long for but I like others have said , those are now just memories.
You are so fortunate to have Christy and her lovely family in your circle. You did a great job of being her Mommie.
Send us more notes. Love and Blessing to you.
Well Ms Betty you have made my day. I try to stay young but I wll be 58 tomorrow. I am fortunate that my mom and dad are still living. Christy and I and all the kids are going to my dad’s this afternoon. His memory is not great now but he still knows all of us. I keep some of the grandchildren almost every day so I am looking forward to school starting back. It will give me some down time. Write the stories of your life. They will bring so much back to you. You will enjoy the writing and remembering! I will be glad to share Christy with you. She enjoys hearing from you and told me so.
Take care and have a great day. Janice
I thank the Good Lord that my oldest son enjoys gathering information on his family. He has traced his dads ancesters back to the 600′s. My side of the family can’t be traced that far but we do go back a few hundred years. Now my great, great, great, great grandchildren will have all of that information.
My dad’s side of the family has been traced back further than my mom’s. We are members of the First Families of the Tennessee Valley. That means that we can certify that our family was here when Alabama became a state. I sent our info in so that future generations can find our research when they hit our certificate. I still need to get more of my info into the computer and go through pictures but it is a huge job. Take care and have a great day. Janice
What a wonderful column – we can surely see where Christy gets her creative writing talent!
Great ideas for sure – I am 59 and when my Mom was still with us she spent years putting family albums together for my brother and I, as well as her youngest brother. She would also put captions under many of the pictures, so we would know who the different family members were.
After Mom passed to her heavenly reward (as she would always say) we would look through the volumes of pictures during the holidays, and tell our kids the stories that Mom and Pop told through the years – this is our way of keeping the family history alive for the ages. Amazing how kids love to hear about great-great grandparents coming to America from Germany, France, etc. and hearing experiences such as the night they first had electricity!
Very good advice to the younger ones !(whatever the age!) so much gets lost because we do not take the time to visit and ask questions of our family!-that wonderful favorite family recipe, family history which may be gone forever, or just the time spent with family which is so important! Thank you for your lovely writing–look forward to more!
My biggest regret is not getting out the video camera when my mama-in-law was telling her stories. What a blessing it would be to pull out that tape and watch her with the family over and over again telling her stories. Capture them on film telling their stories … PRICELESS.
You are so so right. There are things my granny and mom used to make that are gone with them.
And while you are gathering recipes, pictures and stories….get medical histories too if you can.
I just found out recently my grandpa died of colon cancer…one of those that can be passed..
So take the time….you cant get back what is lost.