Front Porch Stories

Making jelly is a time consuming process!  You first have to pick your fruit, then prepare it depending on if you are making jelly or jam.   A lot of work and love goes into each batch.  It is much easier to go buy it at the store, but it doesn't taste the same!  Around here it's a family project.  Everyone has picked berries and helped in the making process in some way.  My hands were hurting today and my grandson came in and tightened up the jar lids for me.  You know we all need to teach ourselves and our children/grandchildren how to live off the land.  You never know just what the future might hold for them.  It could come down to those who can live off the land and those who can't! Which group would you and yours fall into?  Could you make your own jelly, kill and prepare a bunny rabbit to eat?  

Yummy!!!  I just finished making two batches of blackberry jelly.  It tasted so good!  I haven't had any homemade in years.  When I do things like making jelly it makes me miss my Mom.  We always made jelly and blackberry was our favorite.  My son and I have really enjoyed talking about helping Mama pick berries and the things that she always did around the house.  I don't think there was anything she couldn't do if she set her mind to do it.

on the wall I am my Mother after all!!  Have you ever said something to your children and immediately go, no I didn't just say that.  Oh my, I sound just like my Mom!!!!  I have, on countless occasions repeated exactly what she said to me years ago. I laugh at the kids, because sometimes they sound just like me!!  My youngest called the other day and said, "Mama, I'm sorry for the way I acted growing up. I should have listen more and just please forgive me".  He said he thought that if he apologized for all the grief he gave me that things would get better for him.  It seems that my Mom had told him he would get back ten fold the grief he gave me and he doesn't want things to get that bad.  He does have his hands full with situations that I never encountered, and all I can do is pray for the Lord to guide him in the decisions that he makes.

Mamma, I'm not sure that they are worth the trouble!  Sure they are, you'll be the first one to open that jar of jelly.  Yeah I know, but I'm itching all over, and I'll be picking briars for weeks.  Ahh, you know you can't wait for this cobbler to get done so quit whining! As the girls and I were picking blackberries yesterday all those conversations between me and Mamma came flooding back.  My daughter-in-law and her friend are from the Philippines and they don't have blackberries there.  My daughter-in-law has eaten my cobbler before but her friend had not.  So they helped get enough yesterday to make one.  It was good but it had to much juice.  Humm, have to cut down on the water.  They picked more today and they are going to try to get enough to make at least one batch of jelly.  My son has a great berry patch behind the studio and some of the berries are as big as your thumb.  My Mom would have loved to have picked them here.

Part of getting back on my feet was getting my own car and insurance.  Since I had been on Pop's policy, it was like I had not had insurance for years.  I decided the best way to get several quotes was to go online.  Some of the web sites were very hard to understand and hard to navigate. Then I found Aim Auto Insurance.   The first page on the site explains the different types of insurance which helps you determine what kind of insurance that you need.  Then you fill in your information and it guides you to several companies so you can find the one that fits your needs and finances.  While searching for insurance, and wanting to help myself and my grandson, be better and safer drivers. I found an article with a lot of safe driving tips.  It's on a Master Gardener web site, but I found it very informative.

Hey Bro, I know it's late, but we just can't beat this level.  Why don't you come over and help us?  A sleepy young man says, "why not, be there in a little while".  Twenty some odd years ago, I couldn't afford to buy game consoles or video games.  So about every two months I would rent one and some games for the weekend.  The two youngest kids were still at home and that gave them a special treat.  When ever we would get stuck on one of our favorites we would call their big brother and if he wasn't too tired he would come to our rescue.  Our favorite game at that time was Mortal Kombat. Sometimes it seems that things will make a full circle.  A few months back my oldest grandson and his sister got out their Game Cube and the game Mortal Kombat, and had a blast with it!  They even whipped up on their Mom and Dad.(Dad being the one who used to rescue us in the middle of the night.)  My son says this just isn't right, so they get the game for X-Box 3

As I walked passed the newspaper rack this morning, I had to do a double take!  I recognized the name of the new city councilman to be a young man who used to hang out at the house.  It made me really proud to know that he is doing well.   I also had to giggle just a little.  I remember when his older sister first got her drivers license, she wrecked her car in my yard, with both of her brothers with her. It doesn't make me feel old to have watched these folks grow up.  It makes me proud to know I played a small role in their lives as they were growing up.  

Just punch through it Deb!  I was telling myself for the third time, as the boards in front of me refused to break.  They didn't break on the third time either, my first two knuckles were bleeding and starting to swell.  My oldest, who was fifteen at the time says Mom, "let me give it a shot".  So I stepped aside and watched as he slammed them with a shuto  strike, they didn't break for him either.  We went on to finish the rest of the breaking demonstration with those boards unbroken. When we got home my Mom just shook her head and said, "you're gonna regret not being kinder to your body."  She said, "you see these old hands and knees, I wore them out working in the field, you will find later in life that it's the mileage and the abuse you put your body through that will get you, not your age".  She was just as right about that as she was lots of other things she told us.  My oldest and I were talking aches and pains last night and he sa