HUNGRY GERALD

Six year old HG was living in an Athens, Georgia boarding house. HG had left The Bronx with his Mom–she was aiding in the nursing of HG’s older brother, Bernard, who had a below the knee leg amputation after an accident in a barnstorming plane (Medications were primitive then. Today, his leg would be saved and the recovery would be rapid). A Black woman with a warm and soothing personality was in charge of the kitchen at the boarding house. Each day she served hungry HG. a breakfast of ham and eggs, grits and red eye gravy, biscuits with butter and honey, orange juice and milky coffee. (Fabulous breakfast that is deposited in HG’s memory bank 88 years later). This was HG’s first taste of grits and HG was hooked. When on the road, HG always stops at Waffle House for grits and eggs (Waffle and syrup with plentiful coffee). Fortunately, BSK is an ace grits cook (adding cream cheese to the grits as they cook, a useful trick BSK learned from gifted daughter, Lesley R.) Last night, BSK served HG a very tasty bowl of shrimp and grits, a delight from the South.