So Long Victor

Yesterday I had lunch at The Chateau, beloved restaurant of Victor Cascio in Monroe, LA. Guests throughout the restaurant hugged Victor telling him their historical accounts of visiting The Chateau through the years. It was one of the most touching moments. When I left, I asked Victor for a couple of pictures off of the wall in the booth where I was engaged to be married back in 1994. He signed them, Love and Happiness...Thank You For Coming to Visit The Chateau, Love Victor. I am going to hang them in the restored dining hall at Morrow Manor with another collection of historical prints.

This little "dump" of a building we had come to know as The Chateau will be closing down in two weeks. The charm there was never about the junky little vines dressed with ornamental trinkets and empty wine bottle decor. It was about Victor's ability to draw men out from their innermost being. He always put a smile on everyone's face from dignitaries to Elvis to college students hopeful of a new life as man and wife. The Chateau will always be a fond memory.

NErVoUS

Spelling bee yesterday. It was excruciating. I wanted to yell or high five or something. But I couldn't. I had to cap all of my emotions up underneath a copacetic facade. It was horrible and wonderful every time my son stepped up to the podium.

Yesterday, was a beautiful "spring" day in January. I drove back to Terral Island with my sun roof open and remembered that to the God of time...a day is like a thousand years. Being home at Morrow Manor over the weekend....it's like I've never been gone.

Life at The Manor

Brandi in the kitchen at Morrow Manor, 1976 ish.


A couple of years ago I decided to abandon this blog. I did. Though my blog and my life as I knew it was abandoned, I wasn't. My closing blog photo...me at Morrow Manor.

I have gone places that I have dreamed about.

All that has been dammed up...well, the blessings of Heaven have poured out - overflowing in abundance.

I have gone where the eagles fly.

I have not put down any roots.

I have found deliverance.

I have been redeemed.

Healing has come.

The Lord has spoken to me in the night.

The Lord has given me shepherds after His own heart who have led me in knowledge and understanding.

He has made my feet ready and guided them every step of the way.

There has been work to do, but I have not worked by my own strength, might, or power, but by God's spirit.

Wild At Heart

Yesterday was the best day of my life so far...

I know it doesn't look like anything special. I went into a field that I had not been into for 25 years. At one time, it was my most special after school riding spot. The gift: sweet potatoes everywhere.

It wasn't the only gift.

Just being there again was a gift.

When I returned to the Manor, it was packed with people. My Mom, Granny, Nannie Tanner, and even my cousins from Nashville. It was like old times for the first time in many years.

Since I've begun to reopen the Manor....it was the best day so far. Mom baked the sweet potatoes with our steak dinners after a hunt on the Bayou with JJ. I've still got my aim, but my guts have been filed and manicured by city living. Time to step it up.

November Orange

Yesterday I picked the fresh satsumas and kumquats that my Father planted.

The satsumas were brought from Asia to New Spain by Jesuits. Groves started by Jesuits in the 18th century in Plaquemines Parish, Louisiana, have continued to the present day.

All About Satsumas
(2009-10-03)

Photo courtesy of marketumbrella.org
NEW ORLEANS, LA (WWNO) - Who would have thought that without the Society of Jesus, we'd probably not be enjoying satsumas in Greater New Orleans? Let me explain, when the Jesuits arrived here at the start of the 18th century, they also brought with them citrus plants from Asia - including the iconic, loose skinned, seedless tangerine from Satsuma in Japan us locals adore - the Satsuma. Jesuits planted orchards along the banks of the Mississippi River - a practice that continues in Plaquemines Parish (and near Jesuit Bend). With favorable spring and summer weather behind us, satsumas are arriving at farmers markets now. Word has it that it will be a long season with quality fruits. Visit WWNO.org to find Louisiana citrus at local farmers markets. © Copyright 2011, WWNO.

If you’ve never had Louisiana citrus before, it is sensational and a true eye opener, and totally worth the premium of having it shipped to you. Louisiana only produces a fraction of the produce that Florida and California does, but in my opinion the Satsumas that are grown in Louisiana are far superior to mandarins grown in those states and the clementines brought in from Spain. The Southern Louisiana climate is ideal for these fruits, which have a highly aromatic peel that is literally almost falling off in the first place and are absolutely brimming with sweet and tangy juice. For more click HERE.

About the Kumquat

Kumquats are often eaten raw. As the rind is sweet and the juicy centre is sour, the raw fruit is usually consumed either whole—to savour the contrast—or only the rind is eaten. The fruit is considered ripe when it reaches a yellowish-orange stage and has just shed the last tint of green.
Culinary uses include candying and kumquat preserves, marmalade, and jelly. Kumquats can also be sliced and added to salads. In recent years kumquats have gained popularity as a garnish for cocktail beverages, including the martini as a replacement for the more familiar olive. A kumquat liqueur mixes the fruit with vodka or other clear spirit. Kumquats are also being used by chefs to create a niche for their desserts and are common in European countries.

Potted kumquat trees at a kumquat liqueur distillery in Corfu.
The Cantonese often preserve kumquats in salt or sugar. A batch of the fruit is buried in dry salt inside a glass jar. Over time, all the juice from the fruit is diffused into the salt. The fruit in the jar becomes shrunken, wrinkled, and dark brown in colour, and the salt combines with the juice to become a dark brown brine. A few salted kumquats with a few teaspoons of the brine/juice may be mixed with hot water to make a remedy for sore throats. A jar of such preserved kumquats can last several years and still keep its taste. In the Philippines and Taiwan, kumquats are a popular addition to green tea and black tea, either hot or iced.

Yesterday, I picked from the citrus trees my Father planted. The last time I picked them we were together. I missed him very much, but the fruit from the trees was sweet and fragrant and so was the presence of the Lord underneath the overcast sky. I know I will see my Father again. May the Lord bless the fruit of this land and every hand that works it.

Moving Too Fast

I think that .....I know that I am moving too fast. I long for routine and the rhythm of a boring life among friends. God has been very gracious to me in allowing me to flow and move and follow and return and start again. The road has been my close friend and when I finally land somewhere I think it to be my worst enemy. It is tough.

Thankful that God is my advocate.

Do not love the world or anything in the world. If anyone loves the world, love for the Father is not in them. For everything in the world—the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life—comes not from the Father but from the world. The world and its desires pass away, but whoever does the will of God lives forever.

What's next God?

Candles

My candles are running low. The wax is down to the bottom. I took them out of my Father's house when he died. I wish those candles would last forever. I'll never forget the scent. They blessed my traveling life this summer. It's time for new candles in my house.

I bought two new candles and left them behind in my country home. I am home.