Watching the shell that remains of my maternal Grandmother, devoid of her vibrant life, her encouraging smiles and constant conversation was the final factor in my decision to vote with the rest of the family to let her expire. We could not allow her to continue to endure so much pain.
Throughout her entire life this woman took good care of any and everyone who came into her world. It just does not seem fair. Then again, how often was fair a factor for black people?
Anyone who had ever been in the company of her spirit would know that she would not want to exist this way–her body twisted from multiple strokes, her limbs failing, and the cancer eating away at her spine. This was more than any soul should have to bear. To starve her to death seemed so cruel, yet it was the only legal way to let her pass on. The fate of someone who had fed half of Los Angeles was to starve to death.
Helen, whom everyone called ‘Mother,’ would feed anyone who was hungry. She always said, “Anything I give, God will make sure I get back tenfold.” You had to know her to understand her way of thinking. Maybe this book will help to clarify and glorify a woman who is certainly an angel in heaven. When she died, she left seven children, twenty-four grandchildren, and thirty-eight greatgrandchildren.
Mother was the kind of woman that no matter what you did she is “gonna” still love you unconditionally. Don’t get it twisted now, she would be the first to tell you when you did wrong, but still be there for you.
Anyone could knock on Mother’s door or come into her café, and say they were hungry and she would feed them. If you needed clothes, she would take you to her second-hand store and clothe you. Many people took advantage of this, but she knew exactly what was going on. More often than not, when these people got on their feet, they always came back to repay her. Some said they could never do enough for her. Her good deeds were often the catalyst in helping them get their lives together.
Mother always said, “Folks is folks. There are good white folks and good black folks. There are bad white folks and bad black folks, She also said, “Every person’s life is like a pot of gumbo, you get out what you put in.
Gumbo is a very popular Louisiana dish, a kind of soup. There must be a million variations on how to make it. Every person who makes it thinks theirs is better than the next. I have seen people arguing over what is the best way to make this dish. Just like life, everyone has some input on what would make the next person’s life better. Some people want more sausage, more shrimp or no shrimp. Some want crab or oysters. Some prefer more spice, more
file’(feelay). One thing they all have in common is a Roux (Roo).
Roux is the gravy base and the foundation of this dish. It gives the soup its flavor and is what makes you get that second bowl.
Everyone has a Roux in his or her life. Someone who influenced every step they took, and in some way gave their life direction.
Mother was my Roux.
In order to see into this incredible woman, you have to know what came before and what came after. That is where we are going in this book. Let’s go, it is going to be an adventure.
Laissez les Bon Temps Rouler
Let the good times roll!
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