Sunday, January 27, 2013

Lasting Love

 
The other day,
the phone rang.
It was one of my
sister in laws.
 
She was looking for
a recipe from my Mom.
It didn't take me long
to locate my most
prized possession...
 
 
 
 
 
 
It's a wooden recipe box...
it was my Mom's...
 
 
 
with one family favorite
stuck inside the lid...
which no longer holds
fast to it's hinges,
and causes me to
scratch my hand when I delve inside to
retrieve an old favorite.
 
But I don't care.
 
 
When I decide to make something
from this treasured box,
I am immediately transported...
to a lifetime ago,
filled with love,
hopes and dreams.
Of big family dinners,
of laughter and delight.
To a simpler time.
 
And I like that.
I hold fast to those memories.
 
I get particularly excited when I
pull out one of these...
 
 
 
one in my Mother's own hand
and always,
always,
signed,
Love, Mom.
 
 
 
I'd love to hear about your most cherished item.


 


22 comments:

Susan said...

I have my baby quilt that my Grandmother made for me. It's falling apart, so it's kept in a plastic bag, but I just love it! I'll have to take a picture of it sometimes and post it.

Elizabeth Edwards said...

anything that has been past down to me - the ones who are gone. moved on to their heavenly home. photos, scarves, sweater, tables my Pop-Pop made, antiques. it really means the world. i bet it is so fun to hold the recipe & see your mom's handwriting. i guess what is fun is to know you were loved. special enough to keep & carry on those treasures. so loved. so special. ( :

Chatty Crone said...

Jill that was just beautiful and I went step by step with you feeling these things. I know - when you find something in their handwriting isn't that just awesome - you feel like you are almost touching them again.

Lynne said...

I cherish the hand writing of loved ones. My moms notes, recipes, letters . . . one letter my dad wrote me years ago. He had beautuful hand writing. Handwriting is almost like an art, isn't it?

I really liked the Love, Mom on each of her recipes!
Treasures . . .

TexWisGirl said...

really sweet. i treasure my mother's gold locket that i took from her 28+ years ago when i moved to texas - and told her i took my inheritance already. :) it holds a photo of her wearing the locket when she was about 20. :)

Buttons Thoughts said...

Oh Jill I understand I have an old recipe book from the depression thirties of my Grandmothers with her favourite recipes and the handwriting takes me back to the times in her kitchen as a child. Treasures beyond compare. Hug B

Lisa @ Two Bears Farm said...

That truly is a treasure! And I'll be popping back for this recipe when my rhubarb comes in season this spring!

Karen said...

So precious! A few years after Mother died, I found a grocery list written in her handwriting. She had been blind and not able to see to write for decades. What a treasure it was to me.

Michaele said...

I have a collection of old recipes too and it always takes me back.

Optimistic Existentialist said...

Beautiful rememberances of loved ones past...this warmed my heart :)

Debbie said...

a beautiful entry jill!! i have one hummel that was my grandmothers, it's the only treasure i have of hers!!

she died before i was born and everytime i hold it in my hands, i think about all the memories we never had a chance to make!!

Dawnll said...

I have the same treasured item, and "several old cookbooks".
I love to dream and create using many from the box.
Thanks for sharing yours.

Paula said...

I have a book of simple recipes in my Mama's handwriting. Dishes we often had for supper when I was growing up.

Nancy said...

I have to say it's my dad's robe which I'm wearing right now. Weird to some I suppose, but it holds so many memories. :)

Great post, Jill. xo

My Mind's Eye said...

Hey Jill what a touching post and I do know how you feel.
My mother-in-law was a wonderful cook. And I too am thankful that I thought to ask for several of her recipes which are hand written too!
They are in protective plastic sleeves in my cook book.
Ginger bread, cheese straws and oyster stew...are a few
Hugs C

Donna said...

Oh my...I have MY Mom's recipe box as Well! AND, it's lid is off its hinge as well...
Love this!
hughugs

Sonya @ Under the Desert Sky said...

Definitely a precious item! And there is just something special about the kitchen and the meals made there that are such awesome "time machines" - the scents and flavors of meals made made during childhood in your mom's (or grandmother's) kitchen . . . eaten today, those meals definitely bring back wonderful memories, don't they?

I have a tortilla-warmer thingy that my grandmother used to use in her kitchen all the time, to warm up tortillas. She had gotten it from her mother, and gave it to me.

Rosemary said...

Moms and food, food and love, food and memories, all interconnected. After my mother passed away, my sister and I almost cried when we discovered we didn't have one of my mother's classic Christmas cookie recipes. Don't know what happened to it. I've tried a dozen new ones trying to duplicate it, but nope, not the same. It will have to live on in my memory. You're right, that recipe box is a treasure chest.

At Home in English Valley said...

Dear Jill, What a treasure, you have all those recipes in your Mom's handwriting. My most treasured item from my Mom is her crochet hook. It was her favorite, and now mine. I feel her guiding me when I use it. Such a strong connection. loved this post...thanks Jill. Love, Penny

Jeanne said...

Ohhh... The cookie recipes and anything in moms own hand. Yes. They are special for sure.

Anonymous said...

Oh Jill! I love your mom's recipe box - having recipes in your mother's handwriting is so special.

I have a few kitchen items my grandmother gave me. She loved to cook and she knew I shared that same love. She'd give me things from her kitchen and I will cherish them forever.
-Marissa

Paula said...

I loved reading your post! I, too, have handwritten recipes from my mom with side notes like" you will like this one". Someday I want to frame a few of them and hang in my kitchen so I can see her handwriting all the time:). Ruthie Q had beautiful penmanship!