Hi there,
I started writing in a journal over twenty five years ago. I wrote in this journal but I have also taped articles from newspapers and magazines or messages from daily calendars that I found interesting or inspired me. My book, “White Bread and Mayonnaise” was written over a long period of time. For me, there was never really much of a beginning or end to it, but more so phrases that would come to me and I built around them. Everyday objects amuse me when I compare them to a person I know. Because I see charm in simple objects, comparing the object to a person in some unusual way helps me understand the person better. John Keats wrote, “I never can feel certain of any truth but from a clear perception of its beauty.”
In conversation, my aunt told me stories of how my family started farming in the rural south in the early 1900s. To think the area I grew up in was farmed by mule teams is unbelievable. Summers are hot and humid. I realize now the stamina my grandparents had to have to earn their livelihood.
Different periods of time in small pockets of the U.S. carry much history that may not get noticed. To see agriculture start as small family farms with mule teams that progress to using tractors and combines and automated irrigation systems, it’s amazing to think that that period of time only covered roughly about eighty years.
The Korean War sadly lost many of our American men. The Korean War vets that came back from the conflict with agonizing memories were many times, misunderstood. The veterans only knew to not talk about their experiences. Going home to a small town, often times, the veteran was alone in misery in his mind.
White bread and mayonnaise were two staples in my family home growing up. Mayonnaise was spread on bacon, lettuce, and tomato, white bread sandwiches. The mayonnaise was added with tuna fish that was then sandwiched between the white bread. A fried baloney sandwich was also something we put together along with the white bread. In the past few years, I’ve tried recreating the table scene that seemed to be a permanent fixture in my family when I was a child.
Family relationships are complex and always make for a good story. Because I do like to write, coming up with a story about a man and comparing his life to a jar of mayonnaise was pure enjoyment for me. I can sit for hours and write and rewrite. The time flies by without me being aware of how much time I have spent with paper and pen or at the computer keyboard. Because this is my first self published book, I have much more to learn and grow with.
See ya later,
Lula Phine
Click here to buy my book.
