“So she had the words carved on the angel in the cemetery,” I said thoughtfully. “Keeping watch over all of the family graves.”
“There’s something else, too,” Ruby said. She took the photograph out of her pocket again and looked at it. “All of the crosses in the graveyard bear just the name and no more. But on Colleen’s cross, there’s a Bible reference. It reads ‘John 15:13. Greater love…’” She bit her lip. “Just those two words. ‘Greater love…’”
I’m no Bible expert, but even I could complete that verse. “‘Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends.’”
“That she lay down her life,” Ruby murmured. Tenderly, she touched the old photo, and when she looked up, her eyes were bright with tears. “That gives me something to live up to, don’t you think, China?”
Touched, I smiled. “Just don’t go hunting up any hurricanes,” I said. “We need you here.” I put out my hand.
“Thank you,” Ruby said quietly, and took my hand. “I’ll remember that.”
Resources
These are some of the books and other sources that I found helpful in writing Widow’s Tears.
Flora’s Dictionary: The Victorian Language of Herbs and Flowers, by Kathleen Gips, Chagrin Falls, OH: T.M. Publications, 1992. The most complete catalogue of Victorian-era plant symbolism, with an excellent introduction, several informative appendices, and a resource list.
“Galveston: A City Transformed.” A significant archival collection of letters, photographs, oral histories, and other materials, from the pre-storm and post-storm periods. Rosenberg Library: Galveston and Texas History Center. http://www.gthcenter.org/exhibits/storms/index.html (accessed Feb. 27, 2012).
Isaac’s Storm: A Man, A Time, and the Deadliest Hurricane in History, by Erik Larson. New York, NY: Vintage Books, 1999. A compelling account of the Galveston Hurricane, from the point of view of the weatherman who failed to predict it. Isaac Cline’s detailed report of the hurricane is available online: http://www.history.noaa.gov/stories_tales/cline2.html (accessed Feb. 27, 2012).
Through a Night of Horrors: Voices from the 1900 Galveston Storm, edited by Casey Edward Greene and Shelly Henley Kelly. College Station, TX: Texas A&M University Press, 2000. A remarkable collection of oral and written histories (many previously unpublished) collected from the storm’s survivors.
A Weekend in September, by John Edward Weems. College Station, TX: Texas A&M University Press, 1957, 1980. The first comprehensive, chronological account of the storm, gathered from interviews with storm survivors. Excellent photographs.
When the Heavens Frowned, by Joseph L. Cline. Dallas: Mathis, Van Nort & Co., 1946. The autobiography of Isaac Cline’s brother, also a weatherman, who has his own hurricane story to tell.
Recipes from Thyme for Tea
Tomato Quiche with Basil and Green Onions
Quiche is a perfect dish for a light lunch or a quick supper. Served with soup, it’s extra-special!
CRUST
Single piecrust (use your favorite recipe)
1 teaspoon finely minced rosemary
FILLING
3 green onions, tops and bottoms, finely chopped
1⁄4 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
1⁄4 cup oil
2 cups loosely packed fresh basil leaves
1⁄2 teaspoon ground black pepper
2 cloves garlic, cut in half
5 large eggs
1⁄2 cup evaporated milk or half-and-half
1⁄2 cup ricotta cheese
1⁄2 cup plus 1 tablespoon freshly grated Parmesan cheese, divided
6 to 8 thin slices tomato
TO MAKE THE CRUST:
Heat oven to 425°F. Prepare piecrust, adding minced rosemary to flour mixture. Roll out dough. Place in 9-inch pie plate or quiche dish and flute the edge. Bake 10 minutes. Set out to cool. Reduce oven temperature to 350ºF.
TO MAKE THE FILLING:
Sprinkle chopped green onions over bottom of pie shell and top with mozzarella cheese. In a food processor or blender, combine oil, basil, pepper, and garlic. Blend at high speed until smooth; set aside. With an electric mixer, beat eggs in large bowl until foamy. Add evaporated milk or half-and-half, ricotta cheese, and ½ cup Parmesan cheese. Beat on low speed to blend well. Continuing to beat, gradually add oil-basil mixture. Pour over cheese and onions in pie shell. Bake 20 minutes. Remove from oven and top with tomato slices. Return to oven and bake an additional 25 minutes, or until center is firm (if serving hot). Immediately sprinkle with remaining 1 tablespoon Parmesan cheese. If serving warm or cold, remove from oven when center is barely firm: it will firm up as it cools.
Spring Green Bisque with Spinach and Basil
Luncheon soups have a special flair when they come straight from the garden to your table.
3 tablespoons olive oil
1 small onion, diced
1 clove garlic, minced
2 cups frozen peas
2 cups fresh spinach leaves, washed, ribs/stems removed, chopped
3⁄4 cup fresh basil leaves, coarsely chopped
2 cups broth (chicken or vegetable), divided
1 cup sour cream
Salt and pepper to taste
1⁄4 cup finely chopped red bell pepper
1⁄4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
In a large pan over medium heat, sauté onion and garlic in the olive oil until the onion is soft and translucent, about 5 minutes. (Be careful not to burn the garlic.) Add the peas, spinach, and basil. Cook, stirring, until the peas are thawed and the spinach and basil leaves are slightly wilted. Pour mixture into a blender or food processor. Add 1 cup of the broth and puree, adding more broth if necessary. Return the pureed mixture to the pot. Stir in the remaining broth and the sour cream. Add salt and pepper to taste. Return the pan to medium heat and cook until hot, but not boiling. Place soup in four bowls. Garnish with chopped red bell pepper and grated Parmesan.
Ruby’s Romaine Salad
A treat to look at, as well as a taste treat!
1 roasted sweet red pepper
Greens: spinach, romaine, red leaf lettuce, other greens
Fresh mushrooms, sliced
Sweet red onion, thinly sliced
1⁄4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
Orange-Ginger dressing
To roast the pepper, slice it in half, remove the seeds and stem, and place under the broiler, peel-side up. Broil until the skin chars. With tongs or a fork, quickly place in a dish and cover tightly; allow to steam for a few minutes. Then pull off the charred skin and chop. Tear greens into bite-size pieces and arrange in 4 serving bowls. Add chopped peppers, sliced mushrooms, sliced onion, and Parmesan cheese. Toss with Orange-Ginger dressing.
ORANGE-GINGER DRESSING
½ cup canola oil
¼ cup white wine vinegar
4 tablespoons orange juice
2 tablespoons green onion tops, chopped
2 tablespoons minced fresh parsley
1 tablespoon grated fresh ginger
1 teaspoon sugar
Salt and pepper to taste
Place all ingredients in blender and mix until well blended. Cover and chill for several hours to blend flavors.
Two-Bean Soup with Herbs
A hearty bean soup is welcome for lunch or supper. This one is quick and easy with canned beans, or substitute your own home-cooked dry beans. Pair with hot cornbread for an extra treat.
3 tablespoons olive oil
3 cups chopped onions (about 2 medium)
4 garlic cloves, minced
1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh rosemary
1 teaspoon dried thyme
1⁄2 teaspoon ground bay
5 cups chicken or vegetable broth
2 cups cooked great northern or cannellini beans or 2 15- to 16-ounce cans, drained
2 cups cooked garbanzo beans (chickpeas) or 2 15- to 16-ounce cans, drained
Salt and pepper to taste
1⁄4 cup green onion
tops, chopped
Sour cream
Heat 3 tablespoons olive oil in large pan over medium-high heat. Add onions and garlic and sauté until onions are soft, about 12–15 minutes. Add herbs and blend. Add broth and beans. Bring soup to boil; reduce to medium-low and simmer until flavors blend, about 10 minutes. In batches, transfer soup to blender and puree until smooth; return to pan. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Ladle hot soup into 4–6 bowls. Top with green onions and a dollop of sour cream.
Garden-Style Cornbread
Cornbread is a tasty partner with bean soup. This garden-style cornbread, chock-full of veggies, has a lot going for it!
2 tablespoons butter, for the baking pan
11⁄3 cups yellow cornmeal
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon garlic salt
1 teaspoon salt
3⁄4 cup buttermilk
2 eggs, lightly beaten
1⁄4 cup vegetable oil
1 green onion, top and bottom, chopped
1 cup unpeeled zucchini, grated
1⁄2 cup seeded, finely chopped sweet red bell pepper
1⁄2 cup tomatoes, seeded and chopped
2 tablespoons chopped green chiles or jalapeño peppers
3⁄4 cup sweet corn, fresh or canned
1 cup grated cheddar cheese
Preheat the oven to 350°F. Grease a 9 × 12–inch baking pan or a large cast-iron skillet. In a mixing bowl, combine all dry ingredients. In a separate bowl, combine buttermilk, eggs, and oil, and mix well. Add the liquid ingredients to the dry ingredients and mix well. Fold in the vegetables and grated cheese. Pour the batter into the pan and bake for 35 minutes, until a tester comes out clean.
Rose-Geranium Pound Cake with White Chocolate Glaze
This traditional recipe has appeared on tea tables for several hundred years and is a special favorite with herb gardeners. If you don’t have rose-geranium leaves, try peppermint, lemon, or lemon-rose.
6 pesticide-free rose-geranium leaves
31⁄2 cups sifted cake flour
1⁄2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1⁄2 teaspoon salt
2 cups unsalted butter, softened
12⁄3 cups sugar
8 egg yolks
1⁄2 cup half-and-half
2 teaspoons rosewater (use vanilla if you’ve substituted another geranium)
8 egg whites
1 cup sugar
Preheat oven to 340ºF. Butter and flour a 10-inch tube pan (angel food cake pan). Line bottom with 6 geranium leaves. Sift together flour, cocoa, and salt. Mix well and set aside. In large mixer bowl, beat butter at medium speed until creamy. Gradually add 12⁄3 cups sugar, beating until light and fluffy. Set aside. In small mixer bowl, beat egg yolks at high speed until thick and lemon-colored, about 5 minutes. At medium speed, gradually beat egg yolks into butter-sugar mixture. Add sifted flour mixture alternately with half-and-half, beating until smooth after each addition. Beat in rosewater or vanilla. Set aside. In a large bowl, beat egg whites at high speed until soft peaks start to form. Gradually add 1 cup of sugar, beating until stiff, glossy peaks form. Fold this meringue into the batter. Pour into prepared pan, spreading evenly. Bake on bottom rack of oven for 1¼ to 1½ hours, until tester inserted near center comes out clean. Cool in pan set on rack 10 minutes. Remove from pan. Carefully remove leaves. Cool on rack.
WHITE CHOCOLATE GLAZE
4 ounces white chocolate
Pesticide free rose-geranium leaves and blossoms for garnish
Melt white chocolate in top of double boiler over hot water, stirring often until smooth. Place cake on serving plate. Drizzle glaze over top. Garnish with rose-geranium leaves and blossoms.
The Symbolic Meanings of the
Plants in Widow’s Tears
Most of the plants that appear in this book have also been used to convey meanings in the Victorian language of flowers. Here is a list of their traditional associations, selected from florigraphic dictionaries, to illustrate their use in the story.
Chaste tree (Vitex sp.): chastity, aloofness, separation
Cherry tree: a good education
Coreopsis: cheerfulness, gladness, love at first sight
Cypress: death, protection from evil
Dead leaves: melancholy, sadness
Feverfew: protection against fever, illness
Holly: “Am I forgotten?”
Hollyhock: ambition, abundance
Honeysuckle: Generous, devoted love
Iris: “I bring you a message”
Juniper: asylum, sanctuary, protection against evil spirits
Lantana: rigor, severity, sharpness
Larkspur: lightness, swiftness
Mistletoe: protection against storms
Mock orange: memory, but also disappointment and deceit
Morning glory: bound by love, sustained by bonds of affection
Mugwort: safe travels, insightful dreams
Oak: hospitality
Parsley: feast and abundance, joy, victory; “The woman rules the household”
Phlox: “We think alike”
Prickly pear: satire, sarcasm, irony
Rose, red: “May you ever be pure and lovely”
Rosemary: remembrance, loyalty, faithfulness until death
Santolina: protection against bad things
Sunflower: pride, haughtiness, lofty thoughts
Sweet Annie (Artemisia annua): absence
Sweet bay (bay laurel): consistency, constancy; “I change only in death”
Sweet pea: delicate pleasure
Verbena: enchantment
Vinca: friendship, binding affection
Violet: love, faithfulness, loyalty
White poppy: forgetting, consolation, a sleep of the heart
Widow’s tears: grief
Wisteria: “I cling to you”
Yarrow: foretelling the future, cure for heartache
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