I could smell the fragrance of the thick molasses all the way in the upstairs room my brother and I shared. My grandpa’s molasses making trays and tools were still tucked under the shed, waiting to be washed today before the bugs went crazy.
The lightning storm that had crept up suddenly the night before had almost ruined this years molasses run, be together, our neighbors, my father and brother finished the load.
I don’t think any one who has never gone through the grinding of cane stalks, the shuttling of the sugary fluid through the zig-zag trays, or stood sweating in the August heat should be allowed to savor the incomparable taste of warm biscuits slathered in molasses!
When we were young, our family had a joke. If you asked for ‘lasses, that meant that you were asking for your first serving. If you anted a second service you asked for “molasses!”.
Not many people get to see the metal trays set up for molasses making these days They didn’t see horses turning the machine that grinds the stalks of sugar cane, they don’t watch the paddle moving the molasses along the divided trays above the flames. Indeed the love of molasses has nearly disappeared in some areas.
Oh, go on to thee store, buy a bottle and try to imagine the making of molasses I have described, use the little honey stirring devise to drizzle the molasses on your canned biscuits. I guarantee, you will get a glimpse of the way grandpa make then as you close your eyes and savor the first bite!
Sandra Bennett said,
May 26, 2014 @ 1:44 am
Gots ta have some “molasses” !!!
Cannot make baked beans without it !! ;-)
beebeesworld said,
May 26, 2014 @ 5:00 pm
I got the mo’lasses from dad-he is in hospital-no diagnosis yet, I will be in touch love ya brenda
Tina said,
May 28, 2014 @ 1:54 pm
Mmmmm…now I am hungry! What a fine memory to have. Sweet and enduring.
beebeesworld said,
May 31, 2014 @ 1:43 am
Thanks for reading and commenting.
Renee TennisMcKinley (@2old2tap) said,
May 28, 2014 @ 11:37 pm
A great memory. So many will never know the way things used yo br tone.
Sara Healy said,
May 29, 2014 @ 2:08 pm
This was interesting. I’ve never experienced the making of molasses, but you did a great job of walking me through it in my mind. I could see the horses (I like horses) walking in a circle and hear the sounds of the grinding…just as you wrote it. That’s what good story telling is all about; creating a vision of something in the reader’s mind, even though they’ve never experienced it. Well done and thank you.
p.s. loved the tease about asking for more!