Writer Annette Thurmon revisits the memory of her aunts basement canning closet and finds the foundation of her values.
There’s green bean casserole, cornbread, apple crisp, and her famous stuffing.
Most of the ingredients were grown right outside, in her large garden nestled in the mountains.
Simply Recipes / Annette Thurmon
There was always fresh corn, okra, tomatoes, and green beans.
Growing and preserving food was in her DNA.
The basement was just what you would expect: dark, damp, and filled with antiques and boxes.
Her canning jar closet was way down on the left corner.
The wooden shelves had pretty flower-patterned liners and each section of jars was labeled in her beautiful cursive handwriting.
She canned into her eighties, and her passion has stuck with me and defined who I’ve become.
Fast forward 30 years, I moved out of the city into a small Southern town in Georgia.
I was in search of a more abundant lifeone filled with more connection and joy.
I yearned to get back to nature.
So, I went from designing wedding gowns to chasing chickens around our property in the country.
When she talked about canning, the process did not seem scary or complicated.
She walked me through the canning steps with such graceful and effortless flow.
The other day, I harvested about 40 tomatoes and decided to make barbecue sauce.
Its no jokeit took me four hours from start to finish, and it yielded one jar!
For a moment, it felt like a waste of my time.
Then, I realized something: Those four hours were spent with my three-year-old daughter by my side.
She helped gather the tomatoes, and she watched as I carefully peeled and cooked them down.
It took longer only because her tiny hands and feet needed my attention along the way.
I will never forget these sweet memories with her in the kitchen.
Canning is an old method of preserving with time-honored values that I’m still learning.
Through canning, Aunt Mary has shown me a love of gardening and savoring the fruits of my labor.
I hope you find the same joy when you might.