County Fair Pie Baking
If she could do it, so could I!
At the age of 13, I decided to enter some baked goods into our county fair. It was peer pressure since my best childhood friend was going to enter, and her mother encouraged me. This all happened while I was at her house, and Momma knew nothing about it until I got home and showed her my registration.
Momma was a terrific cook with a reputation that preceded her. If she could bake as well as she did, I thought I could, too. So, I proudly announced that I would be entering three items into our county fair: a loaf of white bread, a chocolate layer cake, and an apricot pie. They all sounded reasonable to me; Momma made them with no trouble at all.
Confidence
What I didn’t realize was that at the ripe old age of 13, I entered into the “Adult Division.” I had signed up for items that were way past my experience. They involved techniques that required a lot of practice to perfect. In spite of my blind confidence, Momma never told me I couldn’t accomplish my dream. She could have said, “No, Becky Sue,” or told me to figure it out on my own. Instead, she pulled out her cookbooks and began to teach me the “basics.” I had no idea how complex homemade yeast bread, cake-baking from scratch, and a flaky pie crust could be. I’m so grateful for her patience. We practiced each item once, and then the big baking day for the fair arrived.
Much to my pleasure, and Momma’s surprise, I took home two ribbons in the adult division: third place for the bread, and first for the pie. If you don’t believe me, ask my brother. He still brags to his friends all these 45 years later!
GOD IS GOOD, ALL THE TIME!