I decided to make medicine tonight.
I was feeling a little pale.
My Lithuanian grandmother worried I was prone to "paleness"....a condition characterized by a lack of rosy cheeks and a robust outlook.
She cured me when I was a little girl.... by pinching my cheeks and giving me a shot of medicine accompanied by a few pretzels or salty potato chips--because, as everyone knows, salt holds your color.
My grandmother felt my paleness was the result of poor mothering. My mother was Polish and my Lithuanian grandmother believed Polish people couldn't possibly do anything right.
Grandmother was also suspicious that my mother wanted to squash my spirit which she believed was part of my Lithuanian bloodline. She saw herself ....and me.... as descended from a line of tough feisty women who doctored people in the rural countryside.
When I arrived at her apartment in my mother-approved little dresses , black patent leather shoes and white gloves (my mother used to make me wear white gloves to church).....she scowled at me.
She wanted me to "be a lady" but ....she didn't want me to be too soft.
When I left her house.....I always returned home..... red-faced and strong.... a shot of whiskey flaming my cheeks and enough starchy peasant food to herd oxen.
My mother would go berserk when she saw me.
Her sensor which detected both alcohol and peasant carbohydrates ... would go auuuuuwoooogahhhhh when I walked in the front door.
She'd stop my visits to grandmother for months...which made me sad.
As I made medicine tonight.....I felt close to my grandmother and wondered what she'd think of me.
I'm sure she would have approved my stint as a nurse. I think she would have pursed her lips in disgust at my travels in Asia and Africa....but in the end....would give them a grudging nod of approval.
She would have been pleased I was a wife and mother....but Grandma had....well..... an interesting arrangement with my grandpa and another man for many many years....and I could picture her pinching my cheeks and wagging her finger at me.....to make sure I never forgot "the spark"....she was well into her 60's and still dying her hair with tea bags so she wouldn't show any gray to the gentlemen who lived with her.
As far as my current job and situation in life.....I was puzzled......would think corporate work was the equivalent of wearing white gloves and a little dress? or would she be pleased to see me gritting my teeth and working hard?
I'll wait till the medicine cures in a couple of weeks....and ponder this .....
I've got some kielbasa in the freezer and I know where I can get some pierogies.....I may tap a friend for a few latkies......
perhaps with a belly full of medicine and peasant carbs .......I'll be able to see more clearly.
I was feeling a little pale.
My Lithuanian grandmother worried I was prone to "paleness"....a condition characterized by a lack of rosy cheeks and a robust outlook.
She cured me when I was a little girl.... by pinching my cheeks and giving me a shot of medicine accompanied by a few pretzels or salty potato chips--because, as everyone knows, salt holds your color.
My grandmother felt my paleness was the result of poor mothering. My mother was Polish and my Lithuanian grandmother believed Polish people couldn't possibly do anything right.
Grandmother was also suspicious that my mother wanted to squash my spirit which she believed was part of my Lithuanian bloodline. She saw herself ....and me.... as descended from a line of tough feisty women who doctored people in the rural countryside.
When I arrived at her apartment in my mother-approved little dresses , black patent leather shoes and white gloves (my mother used to make me wear white gloves to church).....she scowled at me.
She wanted me to "be a lady" but ....she didn't want me to be too soft.
When I left her house.....I always returned home..... red-faced and strong.... a shot of whiskey flaming my cheeks and enough starchy peasant food to herd oxen.
My mother would go berserk when she saw me.
Her sensor which detected both alcohol and peasant carbohydrates ... would go auuuuuwoooogahhhhh when I walked in the front door.
She'd stop my visits to grandmother for months...which made me sad.
As I made medicine tonight.....I felt close to my grandmother and wondered what she'd think of me.
I'm sure she would have approved my stint as a nurse. I think she would have pursed her lips in disgust at my travels in Asia and Africa....but in the end....would give them a grudging nod of approval.
She would have been pleased I was a wife and mother....but Grandma had....well..... an interesting arrangement with my grandpa and another man for many many years....and I could picture her pinching my cheeks and wagging her finger at me.....to make sure I never forgot "the spark"....she was well into her 60's and still dying her hair with tea bags so she wouldn't show any gray to the gentlemen who lived with her.
As far as my current job and situation in life.....I was puzzled......would think corporate work was the equivalent of wearing white gloves and a little dress? or would she be pleased to see me gritting my teeth and working hard?
I'll wait till the medicine cures in a couple of weeks....and ponder this .....
I've got some kielbasa in the freezer and I know where I can get some pierogies.....I may tap a friend for a few latkies......
perhaps with a belly full of medicine and peasant carbs .......I'll be able to see more clearly.
Medicine.
Fill 1/3 of a container with fine clover honey
Cut up...... in assorted sizes....plump unblemished stems of Lithuanian cactus
Add the stems to the honey
Add very good whiskey to fill the bottle
Gently roll the bottle till everything is blended.
Cure for 2- 3 weeks. Cactus pieces will sink to the bottom when ready.
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