Erin Martin

Professor Lacey

Composition 111

15 September 2019

More Than A Notecard

All families have their own traditional foods during certain times of the year. For mine,

it’s around December, Christmas, the month of DecemberChristmas, where when all of our

family members come together, and my grandmother makes our famous homemade German Commented [KL1]: Avoid passive voice

pound cake dish. is made by my grandmother. This dessert is meaningful to my family.

December isn’t just the last of 12 months out of the calendar year for my family. It’s the

month where most many families are preparing and leading up to Christmas day. Christmas is a Commented [KL2]: Avoid generalizing

time where our families along withand others come together and gather to celebrate this

wonderful holiday. The first Saturday in December is where when my mom’s side of the family

comes together to decorate my house for Christmas. It has been a tradition ever since I could

remember.

My family takes a different perspective of this day. The house gets filled with this Commented [KL3]: Different how?

indescribable feeling that you would feel by walking in. Each room where there’s different

people, doing different things filling the entire house with a feeling that’s unforgettable. The Commented [KL4]: Try to describe this feeling. It’s a bit
unclear as a reader.
most important part is my grandmother’s homemade German pound cake. For years it has been

so secretive that only my grandmother has the recipe. It is not a normal store bought or out of the

box pound cake.

Growing up my grandmother continuously teaching taught me how to bake, from a

homemade meal to a dessert. As time went by, I was learning something more that comes with
age. Being extremely mortified that I have no idea how to make this dessert yet. My grandmother Commented [KL5]: What is this “something more”? Do
you mean as you grew up, your grandma taught you more
recipes?
knew how thrilled I was to learn this recipe, but, yet she told me, “Erin it just isn’t time, yet.”.
Commented [KL6]: Write in complete sentences.
Believe me, I begged and asked repeatedly when will Ito be able to learn this recipe. Hearing

stories about this dessert, constantly made me annoyed. I felt as if I was being teased. With years

to come, struggling and almost giving up on wanting to learn this dessert. The dDays leading up Commented [KL7]: I’m a little uncertain what you’re trying
to say here. Do you mean, “As years went on, I almost gave
up wanting to learn the recipe.”
to the first Saturday of December, my grandmother says, “Erin, sweetie, I have a good feeling
Commented [KL8]: Which year? Be specific.
you will have a life changing moment soon.”. I replied, “Grandma how do you know that”? Commented [KL9]: In this case, place end punctuation
inside quotes.
“Erin I just have a feeling”.

The day finally came, early morning on December 1, 2018, everyone startsed coming Commented [KL10]: Since this occurred in the past, use
the past tense.
over for the eventful day. Every year the day gets out of hand with our large family. Sometimes I

feel like it’s an obstreperous with everything happening. With that being said, everyone has their Commented [KL11]: Do you simply mean disruptive? If so,
just say that.
role, the guys putting all the lights and decorating the outside of the house. W while the ladies

are in the kitchen along with my grandma baking and preparing the delicious foods. All the

cousins are decorating the lush green nearly 7 seven feet tall with branches that fill out the entire

tree in the living room. They are digging through the four not appealing large grey bins without

any care trying to find the bulbs they want to put up. I hate repeating myself because I get

annoyed. I am saying constantly to my cousins, “to be careful with handling the bulbs because

they can break easily,” n. Not understanding why since almost every bulb gets put on the tree.

They are digging through the four not appealing large grey bins without any care trying to find

the bulbs they want to put up. Not understanding why since almost every bulb gets put on the

tree.

Meanwhile, the kitchen filled with everyone trying to snack before the big meal. The

countertops are filled with the side dishes, the homemade bread and meals that are being cooked
with this incredible aroma. You hear my aunt saying, “get out of the kitchen, you can wait until

dinner” because everyone is eager to devour a great meal. Along with they have a deadline to

due to the fact we eat dinner thirty minutes after five o’clock. Later in the afternoon, around one,

I hear my grandmother call my name, “Erin, I need your help with something in the kitchen”. I

am thinking to myself, “what does she need my help with, when the whole kitchen is filled with

help?” I am already annoyed with my careless cousins and I have to realize that today is

supposed to be outgoing. Honestly, I did not want to go help my grandmother. Commented [KL12]: I’m not sure what you’re trying to say
here.
That was the moment, when it was just me and my grandmother standing in the kitchen. I

finally realized it was finally time. I was thinking so many thoughts at once, my face said it all,

in how I was feeling. She took out the old discolored notecard with finger print stains and nearly

ripped in the corner notecard. At the top, it said German pound cake in all caps. The recipe was

all typed out oin one of theman old- fashioned typew writers. She explained to me, how her Oma

taught her this around your my age and that’s why sheI waited for this special moment with

youme. She went on describingdescribed all the memories this one family recipe has. I was even

more blown away in actually knowing how much this meant to my grandmother. She went step

by step with what the recipe said, even though she knows it by like the back of her hand. As sShe

went slowly with me, and I was learning and watch her every move with each ingredient.

As time flew by, it was time to start setting up for dinner. Everyone was putting the

condiments on the table along with getting the cold foods out of the refrigerator. My grandma

and I were putting all the desserts that were made, on the dessert table. I was so timid to hurry up Commented [KL13]: Do you mean excited?

and dig into the cake. As my aunt was making sure everything was nearly prefect before we

started gathering our plates. My mouth watering as I waited for first piece of the German pound

cake that I had made with my grandmother. I was enjoying myself with the rest of the family, but
I just couldn’t wait for this moment. Adults finishing every meal making sure everything else

was finally done. While eEveryone was preparing their plates and picking which foods, they

wanted on their first round. Before heading for round two and three. , I rapidly headed

straightforward to the dessert table. I looked down, very focused while drooling, I grabbed the

thick knife where I ended up cutting the fresh thin slice of pound cake. Commented [KL14]: Add some more description here.
How did it feel that you achieved this moment? Was there
satisfaction in knowing you made this cake and were then
The eEnd of the long, fun filled day spent with family came to the end. I truly felt this eating it?

fFamily Christmas decorating day tradition was changed. By my grandmother showing and

being patient with teaching me how to make the famous German pound cake, I felt moved. Due

to the unimaginable surprise moment by grandmother. I learned that just a simple, old, nothing

too fancy notecard with words to how to make this cake, was just more than a notecard. It’s

knowing that, with all her grandkids, she picked me to keep this a recipe a secret along with

carrying it on, when I have a family of my own.

Grade: C