Hand-Me-Down Love Read Online Free PDF

taking short walks outside
or roaming around in the back yard.
    “ I never
realized how many birds we have back here,” she said one day in the
back yard. “I wish I knew the names of them. I’ve had all this
time on earth and never bothered to learn what kind of birds they
are.” She turned to Marla and laughed. Meredith’s blond hair
shone in the sun. Marla laughed with her and refused to cry. She
would remember Meredith like that, on that day, forever. She would
remember Meredith turning her head, her blond hair swinging in the
sunlight, the smile on her face. Forever.
    Before Marla
got back to the shop that day, Meredith was calling.
    “ Could you go
to the store and get some things. I want to show you how to make
gumbo. You need to know.”
    Marla got the
list from Meredith. It included green bell peppers and onions, lump
crab meat, stewed tomatoes, and okra. “I’ve got some shrimp from
that last jubilee, so we’re okay on that,” Meredith said.
    The next
afternoon, Meredith greeted Marla at the door. “We’ve got a lot
to do, sister,” she said leading Meredith into the kitchen. Marla
could see that Meredith was tired and she sat her sister down in a
dining chair. “You just tell me what to do,” she said to
Meredith. But Meredith insisted on standing up and guiding Marla
through the complex gumbo process.
    “ I peeled the
shrimp earlier,” Meredith said, holding up her hand when Marla
protested. “I can still peel shrimp,” Meredith said. “I’ve
put the shells on to boil in some water and it’s making a nice
fishy broth.”
    Marla could see
there was no stopping Meredith.
    “ Put the oil and
the flour in the Dutch oven,” Meredith instructed. “Now you’re
gonna stand there for a while making the roux. It’s got to get to
be the color of mahogany.” And Marla stood at the stove scraping
the roux with a wooden spoon. It gradually got darker and darker and
eventually it became the color of mahogany. Meredith, who was taking
a rest in the chair, stood up then and walked to the stove. “Yes,”
she said. “That’s it. Okay, now put in the onions and celery and
bell pepper and let them soften. That’s what we call the holy
trinity, girl.” Marla did as she was told.
    After a few minutes,
Meredith told Marla to strain the shrimp broth and pour it into the
roux mixture. “We’ll add the shrimp and crab toward the end,”
she said. “Go ahead and put in the andouille sausage in a few
minutes.”
    Marla added the
tomatoes and sliced okra and let the pot simmer. She sat at the
table with Meredith and sipped on a glass of wine.
    “ I know you’ve
been resisting learning how to make gumbo for years,” Meredith said
with a laugh. “But the time has come for you to learn it. It’s a
tedious process, that’s for sure. But it’s worth it.”
    After the okra was
cooked, Meredith told Marla to add the seasoning, which consisted
mostly of Old Bay and Cajun seasoning. “Taste it!” Meredith
said. “You’ve got to taste it to know it’s right.” Marla
tasted it and added some more Old Bay. Meredith said it was time to
add the shrimp, which Marla did. “Now add the crab meat,”
Meredith said. “And let it simmer for a few minutes.”
    When it was time,
Marla put the gumbo into two bowls for herself and Meredith. The
sisters ate hungrily, slurping the spicy broth from their spoons.
    “ Ya see,”
Meredith said when they were finished. “That wasn’t so hard.”
    Marla laughed. “I
guess not. Just a lot of steps with it. I think I can do it again.”
And she regretted saying that, because she knew that the next time
she made gumbo, Meredith probably wouldn’t be there to guide her.
    Marla bought the Peterson’s Guide to North American Birds and the National
Geographic guide to birds. She put them in a box and wrapped them as
a present for Meredith. Over the next few weeks, Meredith learned the
names of the birds in her yard and she marked them in the book as
part of her life list of