Delicious Memories

"Would it taste as good today as it did back then?  Write about a favorite meal someone used to make for you."

As a child I always looked forward to visiting my mom's parents.  "Mammaw" and "Pappaw" were always full of fun stories, endless love, and wonderful food.  My favorite meal there was always breakfast.  Regardless of what we would eat the rest of the day, I could always count on having several large breakfasts during the visit.  It could be biscuits and gravy, pancakes, ham. or my personal favorite: grits and eggs.

For those of you unfamiliar, grits is a southern dish made from hominy.  I've seen it fixed several different ways.  I've seen it prepared as a sweet desert and a salty breakfast.  My favorite way to enjoy it was introduced to me by my Pappaw.  Grits, butter, salt, pepper, and a fried egg on top.

The first time that I saw Pappaw prepare his like this I couldn't help but make a face.  It looked disgusting!  The yolk from the egg was running all over his plate and mixing with everything it touched.  He must have noticed my discomfort.  I can't remember exactly what he said, but it had the same effect as "don't knock it until you try it."  It took some prodding, but I eventually made a decision.  In what I considered to be an amazingly brave act, I broke my egg and pushed it towards my grits.  It was fantastic.  The yellow-orange color no longer mattered to me; Pappaw was right.

To this day, this is my favorite breakfast food.  Pappaw is still able to get me to try anything.  Even the most disgusting looking things I will at least try.  I've been surprised many times -- not always in a good way.  No matter how much I've set my mind on an opinion, I'm always open to trying new things.  Who would have thought that grits could teach such a good lesson?