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My Childhood Memories of Grandmother Essay

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Scientists tell us that our sense of smell is the sense most closely related to memory. I have to say I agree. It only takes a whiff of freshly brewed coffee to transport me back to my childhood. Yes, my olfactory sense works better than H.G. Wells' time machine. One moment I am comfortably seated in mid-western suburbia; the next moment I am sitting in the kitchen of Grandmother Randel's house in Tampa, Florida.

Grandmother Randel, like most Southern Belles, was a marvelous cook, and an even better cook-supervisor. A steady supply of cheese grits, collard greens and fried chicken flowed out of the kitchen under her discerning eye, but when it came to coffee ? Grandmother reigned supreme.

I remember Grandmother fussing around her …show more content…

The memory has a name ? coffee milk. The feeling of anticipation that comes over me is the same as it was at Grandmother's house, but at this coffee shop and others that I visit, some things have changed; it's called Caffe Ole or Latte now. The cost has changed, too. A smile must be joined by nearly three dollars to receive your portion of nectar.

Here in my corner of Lola's I watch a steady stream of customers come through the door. The wood and set-in glass of that entry gives light and warmth to the interior. I wonder what sort of person leaves house and home to drive to Lola's and spend three dollars for coffee or tea? There are a lot of young people here, some that could be my children's ages. There are others here, too. Joining me in the middle-aged category is a quiet lady with a large paperback novel, Beneath the Raven's Moon; she looks like she has settled in and plans to stay for a while. And against the main wall there is a mustached man with an out-of-town newspaper laid open on his table. The news from that other small town must be riveting. I never see him look up from its pages.

In the corner nearest the entrance there is a comfortable grouping of furniture with sofas facing and a large chessboard between them. This is where a group of college-aged youth sits relaxed and laughing easily among themselves. The

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