Help! My Brain Has Gone To Mush!

  Pop always lived by the mantra of "Early to bed and early to rise".  Growing up on the farm, we were all expected to do the same and do it without argument.  We had better be out of that bed and in the kitchen by 5am if we wanted breakfast.  Pop cooked breakfast and we ate it...again without arguing.  There was no "I do not like this!"....you ate it.  Pop's idea of a good breakfast was something that would "Stick to your ribs." so, needless to say, we did not have a choice.  We ate mush.  Yep, cornmeal mush was usually what the pot held and what we ate.  Then, about mid morning, we were treated to a snack!....of fried cornmeal mush.  Yep...leftover mush was allowed to cool in the pot, then sliced and laid on a cast iron griddle loaded with butter.  After frying on one side until crispy, it was flipped then fried on that side.  After the stuff was done, it was served with homemade sugarcane syrup.  I could have easily passed on the first go round of mush and had mine fried.  At least, the syrup helped the taste tremendously.  But, no one complained.  We were thankful for what we had.

  Although, I have not had cornmeal mush since I became an adult, I still stick to that mantra Pop instilled in my brain.  "Early to rise" comes naturally.  I have never used an alarm clock nor needed one.  Come 5am, I pop awake and cannot for the life of me go back to sleep.  This morning was no different.  Even though the sun refused brighten the horizon, the old dog and I headed to the pier.  A heavy cloud cover prevented even the least bit of light to guide us.  It was nigh on 7am before I caught a glimpse of the sun.  This gave me time to sit and think about all the things that rattle around in the brain while sitting in the darkness.  I thought of Pop serving up steaming bowls of cornmeal mush each morning and of the fried mush snacks.  Back in the day, it was looked at as a good, solid breakfast that could be served at minimal cost.  Now, I find that the the fried stuff is on the menu of several "high-end" restaurants.  Three small (3 inch) squares of mush drizzled with syrup cost a whopping $9!  Imagine if you added eggs, sausage and a cup of coffee??   I had no idea I was eating so high back in the day! 

  After a bit of reminiscing, the sun started to rise, the dog alerted me to a band of rain coming across the bay and we headed back to the Little Bayou House.  Since then, thoughts of Pop and his cornmeal mush treats have been sneaking back into the brain.  Perhaps a pot of mush will find its way onto my stove in the next couple of days.  I wonder if it will taste like the "Stick to your ribs" breakfast of long ago or like $9 of fancy food?  Funny the things you ponder when waiting on the sun.