Still smiling!
Josh stopped by last night with a bag of fresh morels...sautéed a few up with white wine and butter immediately. This batch (huge goldens) were from Michigan...whose season starts a couple weeks after ours ends. Wisconsin (he says) still has a couple weeks to go...but he is planning an excursion up when they do!
He is one of those amazing success stories...despite the odds. When he was still a teenager (around the same age as our boys) Josh pretty much lived at our house. When his parents finally split up (which was a long protracted thing) they both just vanished with other people leaving Josh with his younger siblings. A lot of kids would have fell apart.
Josh, just worked when he wasn't in school...odd farm jobs...haying crews...fixing stuff...and found a small place in town for all of them...and kept them and himself in school. Took care of business. Became the man of the house. It was a very small town and between all of us neighbors and the local church they made it. The town was their family. Josh did very well academically and was able to go to college on a full scholarship. Now he has a career...a wife and a two year old daughter and an infant son that was born only a couple days after Aiden.
We sat last night talking about those years. How proud Bill and I were of him (back then) for taking charge of the situation and keeping what was left of his family intact and STILL managing to go to college. He remembered so much about the summers at our place with the boys and how much it meant to him while he was trying to survive it all. Minutia...that even I had forgotten...but it made an impression on him.
Now they are all grown. Mine. Them. Everyone with small children or babies. Wives and husband and jobs and responsibilities of their own. We are going to plan a reunion somewhere between all of us...because we are pretty scattered...before the summer is up. Their children now playing with the children of their childhood playmates. The circle continuing. For everything he went through- he made his peace well. Is happy. Zen. Lives in the moment. When we hugged goodbye last night I remember him as a child...little short round Josh who would sometimes get overwhelmed...teased or crash on his bike and I would hug him in my arms like any of the rest of my sons...some ours...some "honorary". For a while in the late 90's it seemed I collected stray sons like other people collect stamps. Johnny, Josh, Zach, Chris W. (who actually lived with us a while) Josh isn't short or round these days...he grew up to be a fine young man.
But then, he always was.
You just never know how many lives we touch along the way.
Some come back toting mushrooms, memories and a warm hug.
This week's book: Under Magnolia by Frances Mayes (Author of Under the Tuscan Sun...and A Year in the World) This memoir was a gritty look at her life growing up in the deep South. If you love Frances Mayes writings (and I do) do yourself a favor and do not read this book.
Oh...technically, she described life in a Deep Southern small town perfectly. Where woman were required to do little else than cook good, needlework and planning parties. Where girls (and grown men) still called their father's "Daddy" till the day they die.
I had always envisioned making the road trip to Chatwood...or catching a book signing of hers. Sadly, after finishing this memoir I still love her world travels and Bramasole books...but this is one I wish I had never read. Reading her innermost thoughts left me with a decidedly bad taste in my mouth and changed my opinion of her (as a person) completely. Dropped it off and picked up something to wash some of the negativity from my mind.
Needless to say...I don't recommend this one.
And a new Microwaveable Cream Pie recipe...
1 cup of sugar
2 cups of milk
3 large eggs
3 teaspoons corn starch
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
Blend all in microwavable glass bowl until completely mixed.
Microwave for 3 minutes on high.
Remove and whip well.
Microwave another 3 minutes.
Remove and whip smooth again
Return to microwave for last 3 minutes...remove and whip again adding 1/2 cup
(of any of these depending on what type of cream pie you want)
Coconut shredded
Chocolate
Mashed Ripe Banana
Butterscotch Morsels
Peanut Butter
And pour into a pre-baked pie crust. Chill. Or top with meringue and pop under broiler for a minute until the top browns lightly. Makes one cream pie. Recipe can be doubled.
An absolutely fool-proof smooth delicious way to make any cream pie. No more double boilers. No more lumps.
Just perfect cream pie!
Have a lovely weekend!
(((hugs)))
