Reflections on Tallow Flat , First of Series

Splendora Resident Reflects
By Milton Partain Contributing writer

In early i942, when I was four years old, my parents left Tallow Flat near Splehdora and moved to Houston. World War II had begun and job opportunities were available for the unskilled and uneducated. The Great Depression had never really ended in Tallow Flat and poverty was the common denominator of its residents.
My parents had never lived in a house that had electric lights or an indoor bathroom, but in Houston we had those things, plus a telephone. We couldn't call any of our friends or relatiives in Tallow Fbit, because they had no phones, but enough of them were moving to Houston ,and acquiring these modern conveniences that we at least knew someone to call .
Like all kids, Christmas was my favorite time of year and as the day approached I looked forward to being at Granny's and Granddad's . Our tree was usually a field pine cut from the pasture where the pines were growing back in clumps after years of the pasture being uncultivated . Pines are not full and evenly branched like other evergreens that were sold as Christmas trees , but they were free .
We could hang the ornaments that were saved from one year to the next on its uneven branches and spread silvery icicles made from aluminum foil on its long needles . An angel would be placed at tbe top,and angel hair made from spun glass would finish the decorations . Granny had a roll of quilting cotton that she spread around the base of the tree to give the semblance of snow .
The tree was put in the living room /bedroom/heater room that took up the south side of the house .The big cast iron woodburning heater was near the south wall. Other than the cast-iron cook stove in the kitchen, this heater was the only source of heat in the house. The bedroom on the north side of the house was unheated in winter and got none of the southerly breezes in summer.
For anyone who slept in the north bedroom during cold weather, Granny piled quilt after quilt an the bed until the load was so heavy that turning over in bed was very difficult.
You could be snug and warm under the mountain of quilts, but boy, when bare feet hit that ice cold linoleum covered floor, you ran as fast as you could to get to the heater room or kitchen.
The old house was built on blocks and the linoleum helped block some of the cracks in the floor, but there was nothing to block the cracks in the walls.
You may wonder why I would want to leave a gas-heated warm house in Houston to stay in the old house. But Granny and Granddad were not in Houston.
We never had a lot of presents under the tree; I usually received one tov and clothes and socks and a stocking with nuts and oranges on Christmas morning .But family and love were gifts that could not be wrapped.
Friends and relatives would stop to visit on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day . The men would invariably bring a bottle of "Christmas cheer" with them and pass it around.
I was even allowed to taste a little of tbe bourbon that provided the cheer. Granddad always kept a gallon jug of sweet port wine that he would pass around as his hospitality . My dad was mainly a once-a-year drinker and he usually had a pint of bourbon that was used on Christmas Day to flavor the eggnog .
The eggnog was home made from scratch using fresh cream and milk from our milk cow and eggs that were laid by our hens. The milk, cream and eggs were beaten until frothy and then the bourbon was added and blended with more beating. Nutmeg was sprinkled on top the cup of glass of eggnog. It. was a special. treat for me to have my own portion .
I remember the wood heater being filled with oak wood ,and pine kindling was used to get the oak burning. Sometimes the heater would get So hot that the sides would glow a bright red .
The roaring of the flames and the heat going up the metal stove pipe sounded like a train in the room .
Christmas dinner was not a turkey,becuse we never raised turkeys, but was chicken and dressing and chicken and dumplings. made with an old fat hen that had quit laying. Also, we would usually have a pork roast from a freshly butchered hog, and desserts galore.
Granny had a special cake that she made for Christmas and New Years ; my dad was born on New Year's Day and it wns his favorite cake. I can't remember all the ingredients, but I know that it called for a full ppund of real butter and a lot of eggs .Also mixed in were nuts and blackberry jam, and it was caUed jam cake. It was so rich that you could only eat a small piece at one time, but it was moist and kept well. We Would be eating jam cake in the middle of January.

That was long ago, but the good memories remain.