Thankful Thursday - Grateful and Paying it Forward

Last week my fellow family historian, Kathy at Abbie and Eveline, surprised me by awarding me the "Liebster Blog Award."  Kathy writes heartfelt stories about her two grandmothers, Abbie Webber and Eveline Coates, the stories they shared with her, and their wise influence on her life.  I am most grateful for her kind recognition and am honored that she would nominate me.

"Liebster" is the German word for "dearest."  The award comes with a few rules, with which I am happy to oblige:

1.   Thank the one who nominated you by linking back.

2.   Nominate five blogs with less than 200 followers.

3.   Let the nominees know by leaving a comment at their sites.

4.  Add the award image to your own site.

Ah...five blogs?  It would be easy to nominate even more than that!  There are a lot of wonderful blogs out there, but here are some of my favorites, in alphabetical order.

1.  A Family Tapestry - Jacqi Stevens' writing is engaging and thoughtful, and she covers her subjects with a thoroughness that makes you feel as if you had known them as well as she does.

2. A Sense of Family - Shelly Bishop has already received this award, but it will be no surprise after you read her article, A Kinder, Gentler Approach to Genealogy Goals.  She points out that these goals are not about the pressure one sometimes feels to write or do something, but in fact they are ways of prioritizing where we want - or need - to spend our time.

3.  Jana's Genealogy and Family History Blog  - Jana Last has posted two articles lately that really caught my attention.  One of these was on how to watermark photographs, so they will remain yours even if someone copies them from your website or blog.  The other was on adding a "landing page" for a particular branch or event from your geneablog.  This has gotten me thinking about adding a landing page of my own...stay tuned.

4.  Pages from the Ancestry Binders - Susan Mosey recently wrote a "Wisdom Wednesday" post about her father's "Analysis of Worries," advice from her late father on a scrap of paper she has kept for many years.  It should be required reading for everyone.

5.  Sitting Under the Family Tree - Cchidlow posted a fascinating article on the background behind some of the traditions of Christmas around the world.  Christmas may be behind us, but read Black Eyed Peas and Pickles now and you'll be "in the know" for next year.

6.  Taos Sunflower - Although this is not a blog about genealogy, it is a favorite of mine.  Martie (full disclosure: a distant cousin of my husband's) is an artist, writer, and photographer who writes about the things that matter most to her - her family, travel, nature, and the little beauties she finds in life.


It seems that this is "award" season for blogs.  Some of these bloggers have already received this award (or others), while others have not.  In any case, this will be my small way of letting them know just how much I appreciate them and the ways their writing has touched me.  If you're looking for some good reads, you can be sure that a simple click on one of the blogs above will take you to the right place.

Copyright ©  2013  Linda Huesca Tully

Share your memories and comments below.

Sentimental Sunday: Master of the Game

Gilbert Cayetano Huesca (1915 - 2009)

My father, Gilbert Huesca, and me, riding the elevator
up to his apartment after his birthday dinner,
November 2008, Santa Clara, California.

Dear Daddy,

To know you well was to understand your great love for the game of chess and how it figured into your outlook on life.

You learned to play chess at the feet of your own father, an entrepreneur in eastern Mexico who successfully ran several businesses to support your mother, and you and all your brothers and sisters.  One of those businesses was a casino – not the kind with slot machines we see today – but with game tables where you could play cards or chess.  There was a U-shaped table in the center of the game room, where up to a dozen people would sit in front of as many chessboards. Your father - my Abuelito or grandfather, Jose Gil Cayetano Huesca, would slowly work his way around the table, stopping at each board, and playing each of the games simultaneously.  Maybe it was because he was the father of eleven that he could keep all those games straight, or maybe he had a photographic memory. In any case, all the Huesca children were expected to learn chess at an early age, and as the years passed, you and your brothers and sisters honed your skills and took turns helping your father at the game table.

You fell in love with the game. You got so good that you’d play blindfolded, two or three games at a time, and as you grew up you played in quite a few chess tournaments throughout Veracruz state, becoming known for your deliberate coolness and expertise.

When the girls and I were young, you tried to interest us in the game.  I can’t speak for them, but I found it too complicated.   It seemed too mathematical – not one of my strong suits – not to mention tedious and slow. I didn't want to think that much. For some reason, you didn’t seem to mind, and over the years you found other willing chess partners – your brothers, your grandchildren, your neighbor. You took great pleasure in sharing your knowledge of the game with others, extolling the virtues of the game and encouraging them to always play their best.   

You also believed in playing all the way through to the end, no matter how long it took. Do you remember what happened several years ago, when you came with the family to Palm Sunday Mass, only to find that no one else had gotten to church yet?  We were an hour late!  It was Daylight Savings Time, and we had forgotten to turn our clocks forward.  

We drove to Santana Row, a nearby outdoor shopping center, to take a stroll and while away the hour until the next Mass.  The kids ran ahead of their "Baba" to a life-size chessboard in the center island.  We all knew what was coming.  You smiled broadly as Michael and Kevin tossed a coin and Kevin got the first game.  The rest of us plopped down in the nearby seats to watch.  Before long, a small crowd gathered to watch as the two of you slowly circled the chessboard, deep in thought.  It was not to be a quick game, and we were not be be very good Catholics that day, as we ended up missing the next Mass.  

One day, after you moved in with us in early March 2009, I watched you look longingly at a chess board you had given Kevin.  It was a hand-chiseled black and white alabaster set you had carried back on the plane from one of your trips to Mexico, but now it sat in our family room, dusty and unused.  I asked if you would try to teach me again, and your face lit up.  Together we polished each piece as you patiently explained what it was called, what its purpose was in the game, its relationship to the other pieces on the board, and how to move it.

As we began to play, you spoke passionately of the lessons you had learned from a lifetime of playing.

It is a game of manners and strategy, you said, one that charges its players to look not just at a single piece or move but at the board as a whole.  Keep your goal in mind.  Have a plan to get there but be flexible.  Understand the value of each piece and its function.  Protect your pieces and help them work together.  Pay attention to the moves – and the mood – of your opponent.  Consider all the possibilities and their outcomes.  Choose your moves carefully, but act decisively and deliberately, and have a good reason for whatever you do.  Think first – you can’t take back your actions. Be responsible for your actions and accept the consequences gracefully and gratefully.  Learn from your mistakes.   Respect the rules and play fairly.  Never pressure or take advantage of your opponent, but try to help him or her if the opportunity arises.  If you win, be humble.  And whether you win or lose, thank your partner for a game well-played.

That first game we played was one I will always remember.  You won, of course, but you let me win the second game, probably so I'd want to play again.  It wasn't necessary, because I enjoyed it so much.  We got to play a few more games before you went home to be with God that June.  Still, on that first day, not only did I finally see the beauty of the game you had spoken of all these years, but I also discovered that your philosophy of life was intertwined with the game itself.

Chess, like life, is a beautiful game that incorporates planning, integrity, and honor.  You understood that and wanted us to understand it, too.  You showed us how to look at the big picture, think deliberately, be responsible for our actions, learn from our mistakes, and look out for one another - always in a spirit of thoughtfulness, fairness, humility, and gratitude.   

You lived as you played, and you were a master at the game.  

My dear Daddy, for this and so much more - thank you.

                                                                    All my love,

                                                                    Linda

Copyright ©  2013  Linda Huesca Tully

Family Recipe Friday: Abuelita's Mexican Rice

María Angela Catalina (Perrotin) Huesca  
(1893 - 1998)

My grandmother or "Abuelita," shown here at her
apartment in about 1983, when she was 90 years old.
She lived independently until her death a month
before her 105th birthday.

I am back to posting after a hiatus of several weeks. It is true that remembering our history and writing about family is what this blog is all about, but after all, being with family - those who are here and a part of our lives now - is what life is all about and gives it meaning.

Another thing that slowed my blogging somewhat was a Christmas gift my husband and I worked on for our family this year.  We have long wanted to compile a family heritage cookbook that would contain the recipes we have collected over the years from our families.  It was an ambitious project that took several months, but it was worth it.   More about that in a future post.

One of the recipes from that book follows here.  My paternal grandmother, or Abuelita, María Angela Catalina (Perrotin) Huesca, was a splendid cook whose dishes were known and loved by not only her own family and friends but also the many guests who stayed at the family hotels, El Buen Gusto (The Good Taste Hotel) in Tierra Blanca, Veracruz; and El Gran Hotel (Grand Hotel) in Perote, Veracruz.

One of my favorite dishes was my grandmother's traditional Mexican rice.  She had many other specialties, but to me, this was one of her signature dishes.  She could never tell me exactly how she made it.  "Ah, hijita (my little one), just a little of this and a pinch of that," she would say whenever I asked her for the recipe.   

Recipes!  Did they really exist before this modern era of cookbooks, cooking classes, and the Food Network? As far as I know, everything in Abuelita's repertoire came from tradition, memory, and experience.  She learned to cook the dishes that had been passed down through the generations.  Her personal touch and the love with which she cooked for her family was what made her meals so memorable.  

Although Abuelita allowed me to observe her make this rice one afternoon, she was rather amused by the idea. Like a modern woman would, I tried to measure the amounts of the ingredients she used and note her techniques. Over the years, I have learned that though the recipe here appears simple, this rice is not easy to master. What you will not find in this recipe is the love that went into it. You will not see the fresh ingredients she had bought from the market that morning or the feel for when something needs "a little more of this or that," is "just enough" or "just right."  That, dear reader, will be up to you.

It would be disingenuous and even presumptuous to say that this was the "definitive" recipe, as the ingredients may have varied from time to time.  However, this is about as close as it came, from my perspective.  When I savor the morsels of chopped carrots and potatoes and freshly shelled peas that give this rice its wonderful texture, I cannot help but see my dear diminutive grandmother blissfully stirring a weathered cast iron skillet atop the gas stove in her tiny kitchen on Carpio Street in Mexico City.

Comfort food, indeed.

Abuelita's Mexican Rice

A traditional accompaniment to many Mexican dishes.

3 cups medium grain rice
1 (1/2) qt. hot water
1/4 cup olive oil
salt to taste
1/2 cup fresh peas
1/4 cup cubed carrots
1/4 medium onion, chopped fine
1 small potato, cubed
1 garlic clove, chopped
1 tomato

Heat oil in pot and add rice when hot.  When rice is yellow and beginning to turn translucent, drain oil, leaving a little to keep rice moist.  Add remaining ingredients and cover.  Cook on low to medium heat until water is absorbed.

Copyright ©  2013  Linda Huesca Tully