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DeAnn (Wolkow) Kruempel
Life Lessons from a Steamy Kitchen
It was hot! Hot outside and even hotter in the kitchen. Two kettles boiled away on the back burners, steam surging from around the covers and up into the air. The normally appealing scent of cooking potatoes and green beans added to the thickness in the room.
A cast iron frypan waited for the drippings from the meatloaf in the oven. Last minute, Mom would whip up some milk gravy.
Mom and my older sisters spent much of the morning preparing for the noon meal, which
we called dinner. We picked and snapped green beans, peeled potatoes and watched as our mother seasoned and mixed a big bowl of ground beef and patted it into the biggest loaf pan.
Even the oven seemed to put off steam that hot summer day. The apple pies baked earlier
contributed their part.
Though the windows were open, the unfailing South Dakota breezes, um, failed. As the
youngest, most spoiled child in the family, I was likely thinking of creature comforts and ways this creature could be more comfortable.
“Mom, we should get an air conditioner.” I sat in a chair while Mom worked at the stove.
Stores had air conditioning back then, but it was rare in South Dakota farm homes. In 1902, Willis Carrier, known as the “Father of Air Conditioning,” invented a machine that enhanced human comfort for years to come. It was not until the 1960s that the cooling system became affordable for homes, especially rural homes. Central AC didn’t breeze in until the 1970s.
“We don’t need one,” Mom replied as sweat beaded on her forehead. I tried to think of
ways to make the kitchen cooler. What about just having cold sandwiches? Maybe open a can of pork and beans? Could we just keep the refrigerator door open? But I knew Mom would not accept any such solutions.
Sandwiches would be delivered to fields later along with cookies and something to drink. This was “lunch,” the four o’clock break that everyone enjoyed. It would be unheard of to have sandwiches twice in one day; no, sandwiches were not an option. I also knew
our mother’s philosophy on feeding her family. Her farmers worked hard. Whether hauling bales or plowing fields, even on the most sweltering days, they needed good hot meals and plenty of food. Growing up, Mom had worked next to her mother in the kitchen and in the fields. She believed a wife’s role was crucial for the success of the family farm.
If takeout had been a thing then, I probably would have suggested it, though Mother
would have been appalled. “We don’t waste good money on something we don’t need.” She would have then kindly informed me that people pay dearly for the convenience of having someone else cook for them. Obviously, I was not going to come up with any viable cooling solutions.
When the farmers came in for dinner, Don and Delmer washed up while Dad plugged in
the big box fan and set it on low to move air around the kitchen table. We ate, talked and enjoyed Mom’s cooking. No one complained about the hot kitchen, not even once.
After pie and coffee and a twinkle-eyed “Excuse me!” following a big belch, Dad stood.
He put his arm over Mom’s shoulders and gave her a peck on the cheek. “Thanks for the good dinner. I don’t know what we would do without you!”
How cool was that!
Read more of the author’s stories! Kruempel’s ten books are available on Amazon. Signed copies may be purchased at the Harrison County Welcome Center.
Contact Kruempel at deannkruempelauthor@gmail.com.
