Today's memory is not so much a memory but a tradition. There are many things that could be considered a tradition. The walnuts in Pappee’s slippers were a tradition, in the sense that it was something that probably started with my mom and continued with the grandchildren. Everyone seems to have things that they do every year. We have several things, those are the things I have been writing about and will write about in the days to come.
A fresh fruit salad was one of the dishes always on the table at Christmas dinner. It seemed that every year, no matter what the economic condition, there was a fruit salad. Apples (a couple of different kinds), oranges, tangerines, grapes (sometimes with seeds, sometimes not), bananas and walnuts (not the kind that we already shelled, but the ones we shelled by hand) were all a part of the dish. Most of the time, I remember that it was my grandmother, Mammaw who did all the work. As we girls got older, we got to help. I can remember many times, sitting at the kitchen table cracking walnuts! It was one of our favorite dishes at the holidays!
Today, Mammaw, Pappee, Mom and Dad are all gone. Produce is much more expensive these days, but still we manage to have our fruit salad. For me, it is a precious memory of what was.
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