Granville Magazine

Last month Granville Magazine ran a contest looking for the best story about home canning and preserving, inspired by the Wall of Preserves in the Home Grown exhibit.

They received several excellent submissions, each touching in their own way the themes of home, family and childhood memories. Who would have known that home canning was so inspiring?

In the end, the winner is senoritaJen, who reflects on the magic of canning peaches:

Kitchen Alchemy
When I was a child, canning seemed as intimidating and thrilling as alchemy. The huge enamel canner was an imposing sight, as it took up most of space on the stovetop and emitted billowing clouds of hot steam. It was remarkable to me that my mother and I could produce something that was sealed in glass jars and looked like it could have come from the store.

It was my task to peel the peaches, which I did while perched on a sturdy kitchen chair, letting the fuzzy skins drop into a large orange mixing bowl. Then later I would observe from a safe distance as my mother fearlessly retrieved the filled jars from the boiling cauldron. We would get such satisfaction at the end of the afternoon, proudly surveying all our mason jars lined up in neat rows on the table, with the sun streaming through the window and turning the peaches into gold.

So congratulations senoritaJen, enjoy your MOV prize pack!

Read the submission from the runner-up here.

Image credit: E. Brown-John