A Lick and a Promise

I've often heard that money can't buy happiness. Many who are born poor can grow up happy, with fond and endearing, life-long memories. Who better to remind us of this than a loving mother, my Mom. She was the second child born into a financially strapped, but loving and humorous family. Her extended clan of aunts, uncles, cousins, and grandparents were all characters: hard-working, hard-playing, and hard-loving individuals. They not only loved life, but enjoyed and valued each other. They were kind people, resourceful with what they had to share: a story, hot meal, or recently laid chicken eggs. They were a happy group of people who worked as a network to help each other. There were no strangers within the Martin clan, and from these warm and loving people came my exceptional mother, a woman who did what she could for her family within her limited means but vast abilities. You don't have to be rich to be talented, or caring, or forgiving, or to recognize the funny side of life. This memoir is a collection of true stories, colorful individuals, idiosyncrasies, favorite foods, recipes, growth and inspiration from the past-a time that has been replaced by the rapid-paced acceleration of a world where time no longer stands still.