I know this time of year during the holidays, can be overwhelming and stressful for everyone. It is easy to take time for yourself and skip out on an event with the intent of doing it next year.
When I was a kid, one of the things that I remember the most is my Grandmother on my father’s side would make nut rolls. She was an excellent cook, and I learned a lot from her both in cuisine and life lessons. My Grandmother was the type of person to call you “Sweetie” and give you a big hug and say things like “Everything happens for a reason” all the while cooking you waffles and bacon for breakfast.
Every single year, she would spend weeks kneading out dough and baking up these little sweet crescent-shaped walnut cookies for everyone she knew. She handed them out by the gallon bag. There must have been hundreds every year, thousands per decade, too many to have kept track of. She would slave at rolling them out on the top of her chest freezer and fill them with a concoction of nuts and butter and sugar only to then cover them with even more butter and sugar.
I loved helping bag them up as she wouldn’t let me, at a young age, do much else.
It was time that we shared every year. They were delicious to say the least. They may have been what led to my Grandfather eventually developing Type 2 diabetes, but no one complained nor did we realize that one day there wouldn’t be any more nut rolls.
My other Grandmother on my mother’s side was a bit different as she had raised her children and didn’t see much reason to do it again. I didn’t understand that so much when I was younger as I do now. It did help me understand that love can come in many forms.
While I only saw her a few times a year, I could always count on a slice of minced meat pie at Christmas. That was our thing. The adults always thought it was strange that I liked it and a piece was always saved for me. To be honest, when I was little by the time we got to her house for the holidays, I was burned out of pumpkin pie for the year and it was a nice change of pace.
I can still taste that pie when I think about it and have never had another one since. While there are not many people around anymore who would remember either dish, I am glad that I had those experiences, as I would not trade them for the world.
By comparison, my wife comes from a very large family. They try to get together for every holiday. I am glad to be at a point in life where I can join them more than when I allowed work to always get in the way before. They have many of their own traditions, one of which is the game “White Elephant” game. The rules seem to change every year except for one thing – for 21 straight years, even though we bring extra gifts for it and they encourage me to join in, I abstain.
I prefer to watch them play and just soak in the joy of seeing a big family come together. With decades passing by I have noticed some of their dishes disappearing also and while we may no longer have homemade noodles or nearly enough deviled eggs, it is still plentiful and always enough.
However, it is the simple little things that I find myself missing most of all.
My mother made the nut rolls a few years back with my kids and gifted them to me. That is something that I will remember forever. I love thinking about my kids in her kitchen and how it will impact them and their lives. This year, my wife – God bless her – found a local baker and ordered some nut rolls for me and without clarification, received a nut roll loaf, more like a pumpkin roll.
It was still delicious, and I love her for trying.
She is a travel nurse and spends most holidays away helping others; hence, we have our own new traditions that we practice such as me being the “Head Elf in Charge of Wrapping Gifts.” She also sells tie-dyes on the side, and much like the local baker from whom she bought the delicious nut log at the last minute, I currently find myself finishing up her holiday orders at the last minute while she is away at work.
What are some new traditions that you have? Ones from days past that you miss? We would love to hear them.
Be thankful this holiday season and cherish the time you spend with each other.
