My thoughts always drift back to my childhood when I'm sick.First, Mother would press her cheek against my forehead to check my temperature, and then she would give me a big hug and say, "Oh, Brenda Gail, bless your heart. I'll bet some hot cocoa and vegetable soup would make you feel better."
Mother's hot cocoa was smooth and creamy with just the right amounts of cocoa and sugar. It tasted very rich; I think she added a little evaporated milk.
To make her vegetable soup, she started with chopped onions, tomatoes and potatoes, adding whatever vegetables she had on hand: carrots, celery, corn, peas, sometimes green beans. She seasoned it with salt and lots of black pepper and set it on the back burner to simmer.
I've never been able to duplicate it.
For about a week, now, I've been nursing a sore throat and a head cold. I phoned Mother last night, and when I told her I was sick she said what I knew she would say: "Oh, Brenda Gail, bless your heart."
And if I were there now, I have no doubt she would offer to make me some hot cocoa and vegetable soup.
