My Blog Stop!: Memories are Blessings | My Hometown ~ Miami, Florida

"Count your Blessings" is a familiar Christian hymn that encourages people not to focus on the negatives and count all the things they can be thankful for; all the good things in life they've been blessed to experience. Try it. Especially when you're about to end a year and start a new year. It's a great time to reflect on the blessings you're counting.

© Photographer: Americanspirit | Agency: Dreamstime.com
(Image: The Torch of Friendship at Bayside Park, Miami, Florida)

Getting close now to my threescore an ten (70 years, the average life expectancy). When I count my blessing over the years, the list has grown and grown and grown. There are a lot of add-ons. But the list always includes one great memory from my childhood.
Good food!

Growing up in Miami, Florida, there was good eating all around me. My main sources for everyday meals were: my mother's cooking, church dinners prepared by faithful sisters, and a sweet little old gray-haired lady who owned and operated a restaurant around the corner from my house called "Mom's Cafe". I never knew her name because everybody called her "mom". All of these women really knew how to serve up the love! Huge plates of pigeon peas and rice, potato salad, collard greens, black eye peas, fried chicken; sweet potato pie for dessert.

As I grew into a teenager and young adult, started working part-time while pursuing my education; had a little pocket change so occasionally I could go out to eat. Downtown Miami and particularly Calle Ocho (8th Street), there were spots where you could chow down on delicious Cuban food: sweet fried plantains, black beans and rice, vaca frita, or a toasty Cuban sandwich. Kosher food delicatessens and restaurants run by the Jews on Miami Beach were the best! The soups, sandwiches, and desserts were outrageous! That was just lunch! Of course, no major city is complete if you can't find good Chinese food. Miami is a major city with places that have award-winning Chinese cuisine.

This book cover is from the 1993 publication but it reminds me of my hometown.