It isn't often that I gorge myself on a box of cookies or candy. These days, with my diabetes, I try to be a little more careful. But I remember when I was much younger and had a similar sweet tooth as my father. He could down a bag of chocolate chip cookies as if it were potato chips instead. For breakfast, he would often have cookies or a large slice of cake. He would tell me, "It's the same sugar and flour that's in pancakes or waffles!"
The other day, I saw a package of Nabisco Sugar Wafers sitting on the grocery store shelf. It had been a very long time since I'd seen them. Maybe they hadn't been there; maybe I just haven't seen them. I don't know. They brought back a flood of memories.
I'm not sure what the first one was. I think it was the aroma of the thin, crisp wafers that had a distinctive "snap" when you bit into them. Maybe it was the thin layer of luscious cream inside. Not too much, not too cloyingly sweet, just right.
Perhaps it was the vision of my father sitting at the kitchen table in our apartment on Fullerton Street in Chicago. He was halfway through the second of "3 Stay-Fresh Packs" of the Biscos. I was a junior in high school. I remember looking slightly askance at him with a little smile. A little twinkle in both of our eyes shared that we were, at that time, both of the same ilk. He would say, "Tell your mother we're almost out of staples. . . you know, staples: cake, cookies, candy."
I took a look at the price tag on the shelf, $5.79! That was almost 3 times what the store brand cost! I didn't care. I tossed them into the shopping cart. When I got home, I got a glass of milk and sat down with the cookies in front of the TV. With great dispatch, I devoured the entire box. . . as I gorged myself on memories.
What's that food or beverage that sends you back to a different time or place? To a flood of memories of family or friends? Go buy some Biscos, or Hostess Snow Balls, or A&W Root Beer, or Canfield's Cream Soda. Sit down and eat or drink to your heart's content. Then. . .craft your story.
- National Storytelling Network? You should be.
Saturday - February 1st
Thursday, February 6th
The great Bobby Norfolk, master teller and master of facial expressions and sound effects is coming to Phoenix for a week, starting February 8th. Here's a schedule:
Friday - February 21
