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Wednesday, December 21,2022
dawsonnews.com I DAWSON COUNTY NEWS I 3B
A Gothic Christmas tale
At the turn
of the 20th
century, and
on into the
mid- 1950s,
life in the
Appalachians
was a tale of
black and
white gothic existence.
Hollywood pretends it
knows the truth when it
shows little girls in tat
tered coats, handed down
many times and mended
repeatedly, while men
wear overalls and women
are covered in dresses,
thick stockings and
sweaters that sometimes
lasted 25 or 30 years.
At Christmas, a scraw
ny tree was dragged in
from the piney woods
and decorated with rus
tic, homemade orna
ments and, if possible,
strands of popcorn. As
Mama told it, each child
had an old sock for a
stocking. On Christmas
morning, nothing thrilled
the children more than to
find fresh fruit - a real
luxury to those who
barely had enough to eat.
This story I will
always recall her telling:
My uncle Doyle, three
years old, could not talk
plain. He had pulled out
an orange and a few
pieces of hard candy
when he realized the
sock was still heavy. He
dug back in and
found another
orange, stuck in
the toe of the
sock. He was
overcome with
pure joy.
“Wook!” he
exclaimed,
dancing around the bare
floor and cold room.
“Me got another
‘wrange.’”
For the rest of her
days, Mama would
remember the joy those
two oranges gave her
baby brother. In the
mountains, especially in
the Depression, folks
would often say, “It’s
gonna be a hard candy
Christmas” meaning
there would be no toys.
Only fruit and hard piec
es of candy. Christmas
never comes that I don’t
think of Mama and her
love for peppermint
sticks. In fact, in the
kitchen of her house, I
still have the jar with the
last seven or eight pep
permint sticks that were
left over from the
Christmas before she
died in February.
Dolly Parton made a
Christmas standard of a
song called, “Hard
Candy Christmas.” Once,
Tink and I were discuss
ing songs of hers that
would make good mov
ies. I commented, “Hard
Candy Christmas would
make a terrific movie.”
Dolly replied, “I didn’t
write that song. Carol
Hall did.”
I was stunned. “It
sounds just like you.”
She shrugged. “I didn’t
write it but I lived it.”
Later, I read that Carol
Hall, a Broadway com
poser, had been inspired
to write the song after
reading Truman Capote’s
“A Christmas Memory”,
one of my favorite short
stories.
Appalachian folks
from that era - the one in
which Mama was raised
- had a mournful woe
woven into the timbre of
their voices when they
recited poems or stories.
It was a sad melody born
into their voices that
never escaped them. It
could be chillingly
haunting like Mama’s
voice when she recited a
lengthy ode that she had
learned as a child.
A gloomy tome, it is
90 lines long. Mama
knew each by heart.
Sometimes I, or later my
niece, Nicole, would
climb into bed with
Mama and ask her to tell
the story. In her best
Appalachian, melanchol
ic tone, she began:
The room was so cold
and cheerless and bare,
With its rickety table
and one broken chair
A cradle stood empty,
pushed up to the wall
And somehow that
seemed the saddest of all.
It was a Christmas tale
for us, about a man who
left his dying wife and
baby, without food or
heat, to go to The
Drinking House Over
The Way — the title of
the poem. Occasionally,
Mama would stop and
gather her thoughts but
she always remembered
all 90 lines.
Over 100 years old, it
ends with the lines:
And, please, when I’m
gone, ask someone to
pray
For him at the drinkin’
house over the way.
Nicole asked Mama to
write down the words.
Recently, while going
through my desk, I found
a notebook of Mama’s
where, in her distinctive
script, she had written
the poem. It was almost
as powerful in her writ
ing as it was in her voice.
A gothic Christmas
tale of Appalachian woe.
Ronda Rich is the best-sell
ing author of What
Southern Women Know
About Faith. Visit www.
rondarich.com to sign up
for her free weekly news
letter.
RONDA RICH
Columnist
FROM 1B
Broadway
are huge parts of my game,”
Broadway said. “My run blocking, to
me, is one of the best in the Sun Belt
Conference. You can have someone
who’s a better athlete or has better
technique, but if you beat the
[defense] off the ball and you’re
physical...they can’t get a chance to
showcase their ability.”
Outside of his pending move to
Statesboro, Broadway expressed his
excitement at his high school team’s
success this season.
“It’s always good seeing your old
team win the region and have great
success,” Broadway said. “I’m very
proud of those boys and what coach
Maxwell is continuing to do over
there between the white lines at Tiger
Stadium.”
He also made sure to give the peo
ple of his former community some
recognition as well.
“You see [the team’s] success, you
see the community buy into the pro
gram and love those players as their
[own] and it’s truly amazing,”
Broadway said. “Dawsonville is one
of the best towns full of the best peo
ple in the state of Georgia...and I’m
sure those players feel that as well.”
FROM 1B
Basketball
the paint helped fuel the team’s
efforts in a 62-46 loss to the undefeat
ed Dragonettes, a 73-34 win over
East Jackson and a 51-38 loss to
North Paulding.
Against Pickens, the boys were led
by Joshua Priest, who caught fire
from three-point range and sank six
of those shots to help Dawson build
their lead throughout the game.
His 18 points would be accompa
nied by the same total from Caden
Reed, while Trey Harvey led all scor
ers with 23 points.
“Everybody took turns getting hot,
which is what a good team is supposed
to do. I don’t think we took many bad
shots,” head coach Todd Cottrell said.
“I was more proud of our defense. We
were really engaged defensively and
got some fast break opportunities.”
It was Harvey who set the tone for
the Tigers early in the game, scoring
14 first-half points and establishing
himself on the defensive end against a
Dragons team that played well in the
first half.
Leading 17-16 after the first quar
ter, the Tigers put together an efficient
second quarter and expanded their
lead to 36-25 at halftime.
In addition to the three leading
scorers, a couple of timely shots by
Ethan Parker helped Dawson get to
that halftime margin.
Harvey, Priest and Reed would all
score early and often in the second
half, with the turning point of the
game coming early in the fourth quar
ter.
After leading 57-40 after the third
quarter, a flurry of made shots by
Dawson put them ahead by as many
as 28 points just halfway into the final
quarter.
A late charge by Pickens would
reduce the arrears and result in the
final 16-point margin of victory for
the Tigers.
For the Lady Tigers, the return of
Chester helped them take on a diffi
cult task in Pickens. She would finish
the game with 12 points while Abby
Samples-Slaton would lead the team
with 14.
Chester and sophomore Eva
Bishop helped Dawson keep up early
on against the Dragonettes, who came
into the game ranked No. 6 in Class
3A.
After a promising 13-11 first-quar
ter lead, the Lady Tigers had difficul
ty scoring and the visitors increased
their shooting consistency to take a
30-21 lead at halftime.
From there, the Dragonettes would
expand their lead, going ahead by as
many as 22 points before the Lady
Tigers reduced it to a 10-point deficit
during the fourth quarter.
Despite the late effort from
Dawson, the visitors would finish the
game off to win by 16 points.
“I thought [Pickens] outplayed us,
which is frustrating at home,” head
coach Will Anglin said. “We knew
going into it that they are relentless on
the offensive glass...and you can’t
take any possessions off. Our region
is brutal but we are as good as any
body in our region when we play.
We’ve got to play harder.”
Against East Jackson, Harvey and
Reed both scored 22 points to help
the boys team lead by as many as 14
points before the game tightened up
in the fourth quarter. Priest contribut
ed 14 points.
The girls team would get back in
the win column against East Jackson,
with Chester leading the way early
with a 12-point first half.
She would finish with 14 points
while Samples-Slaton again led the
team with 15 points. Bishop contrib
uted 10 points.
At the War Lodge invitational,
Harvey continued his string of dou
ble-doubles with 26 points and 16
rebounds while Priest scored 15
points. Parker again proved to be a
key asset in setting up scoring chanc
es, contributing 8 assists.
The three wins put the boys team at
a 6-5 record so far, already matching
their win total from last season. The
Lady Tigers now stand at a 6-4
record.
Both teams hosted Flowery Branch
on Monday, Dec. 19, and will play in
a post-Christmas tournament next
week, hosted by Christian Heritage
High School in Dalton. The first
games for Dawson will be on
Wednesday, Dec. 28.
Try this lucky New Year's meal
I cannot believe
we are about to
ring in the new
year! Wow—
2022 flew by,
didn’t if? It is
always so strange
to get used to
writing the new
year—I am sure
2023 will be no different.
How to you celebrate
January l’st? We like to
make a big breakfast, then
skip lunch, and enjoy our
traditional good luck meal
of collard greens, black
eyed peas, glazed ham and
com bread. Here are some
of my favorite tried and
true recipes for the first
day of the new year.
Happy New Year every
body!
Glazed Ham
• 1 (8-10 pound) spi
ral-sliced bone in
half ham
• 1 recipe glaze (reci
pe follows)
Adjust oven rack to
lowest position and pre
heat oven to 250-degrees.
Unwrap ham, discarding
plastic disk. Spray roasting
pan with non-stick cook
ing spray. Place ham, cut
side down in roasting pan.
Cover tightly with alumi
num. Bake until ham cen
ter registers 100-degrees,
about 14 minutes per
pound, depending on the
size of your ham.
Remove ham from oven
and increase oven temper
ature to 350-degrees.
Brush ham with one-third
of the glaze and return to
oven for about 10 minutes.
Remove ham from oven
and transfer to cutting
board. Brush ham with
another third of the glaze.
Tent with foil and rest for
15 minutes. While ham
rests, add 6 tablespoons of
the ham juices to the
remaining glaze. Warm
over medium heat in a
small saucepan. Carve
ham and pass the sauce
separately.
Maple-Orange
Glaze for Ham
• % cup pure maple
syrup
• Vi cup orange mar
malade
• 2 tablespoons but
ter
• 1 tablespoon Dijon
mustard
• 1 teaspoon pepper
• !4 teaspoon cinna
mon
Combine all ingredients
in a small saucepan and
heat over medium heat,
stirring occasionally. Cook
5-10 minutes until reduced
to about a cup.
The secret to perfect
collards begins with the
prep. Remove the tough
stems and then tear the
greens into bite sized piec
es. Wash the greens thor
oughly—if your greens
are particularly dirty, soak
them in a large pot of
water and rinse many
times. You can cook them
in bacon drippings, or you
can just use butter and
olive oil. We like to douse
our collard greens with
Texas Pete’s pepper
sauce—its vinegary and
has a little kick. Plain vin
egar works too! Don’t
throw away that
left-behind-liquid
from your greens.
This liquid is called
pot likker and is
delicious for dip
ping your corn-
bread in. If you
have extra liquid,
add it to soups or
stews for amazing flavor.
Collard Greens
• 8 slices bacon,
finely chopped
• 1 large onion, fine
ly chopped
• 4-6 cloves garlic,
minced
• 2 (32-ounce) con
tainers of chicken
broth
• 2 bunches of col-
lard greens,
stemmed, cleaned
and tom into bite
sized pieces
• 1/3 cup apple cider
vinegar
• 1 tablespoon sugar
• 1 teaspoon salt
• !/2 teaspoon pepper
Cook bacon until almost
crisp. Add onion and cook
another 8 minutes. Add
garlic and cook a minute.
Add chicken broth, col
lards, vinegar, sugar, salt
and pepper. Bring to a boil
and then simmer for 2
hours until desired tender
ness.
Legend has it that black-
eyed peas are associated
with bringing you good
luck. Whether you believe
that or not won’t matter
once you taste these. This
isn’t really a recipe, per se.
Basically, take a bag of
dried black-eyed peas and
sort them, removing any
thing that doesn’t belong.
Rinse and soak the peas in
cold water in the refrigera
tor overnight. Drain and
rinse again. Cover with
cold water and bring to a
boil. Reduce to a simmer
and cook until tender.
Depending on how old
your peas are, this could
take 1 to 2 hours. You can
also jazz up your beans by
adding some minced
onion, and/or a ham hock.
You can also use chicken
broth or vegetable broth
for even more flavor. If
liquid evaporates, just add
more.
Skillet Cornbread
• 1 cup yellow corn-
meal
• 1 cup flour
• 1 tablespoon bak
ing powder
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 'A teaspoon baking
soda
• 2 cups buttermilk
• 2 eggs
• !/2 cup buttermilk
Preheat oven to
425-degrees. In a bowl,
whisk together commeal,
flour, baking powder, salt,
and baking soda. In anoth
er bowl, whisk together
buttermilk and eggs. Add
liquid mixture to dry mix
ture, stirring just until
combined.
Heat a 10-inch cast iron
skillet just until it begins to
smoke. Add butter, stirring
until butter has melted.
Pour batter into skillet and
bake 25-30 minutes. Cool
on rack.
The diet can start tomor
row! Enjoy these delecta
ble pecan pie bars today!
ADLEN
ROBINSON
Columnist
Rio White Dawson County News
The Dawson County combined high school and junior high
band plays "Santa the Barbarian" during the winter concert
heldThursday, Dec. 15.
FROM 1B
Concert
the finale as three separate class
es during the day, Gattis was
impressed with how the collec
tive effort went on stage.
“They pulled it off very well
because they were prepared,”
Gattis said. “Some did not know
how it was going to turn out until
we performed it for the audience.
I told the youngest ones to let the
high schooler take the lead and
follow closely so the tempo or
volume does not get out of
hand.”
“Santa the Barbarian” featured
an ominous narrator, a macabre
motif of “Jolly Old St.
Nicholas”, and prominent parts
from nearly every instrument.
That final entertaining perfor
mance capped a concert that
began with the eighth grade band
playing “Bell Carol Rock” and
“Jingle Jazz”, allowing the per
formers to try out Christmas
music in a more creative style.
The high school band played
four distinct pieces, beginning
with “Sleigh Ride”. After finish
ing up the familiar tune, the band
ventured into different territory
with the next three songs.
In contrast to the previous
piece, the band played a serene
arrangement titled “Old Scottish
Melody”, which prominently
featured “Auld Lang Syne”.
The following two pieces
would increase in energy, with
the first being “Stars and Stripes
for Christmas”— a festive tribute
to patriotic American music.
Wrapping up the high school
ensemble performance was “We
Wish You a Mambo Christmas”,
a song that the band had played a
couple years before and had been
requested by the students to play
again.
Overall, the musical selection
allowed each band member to
play in both a fun and challeng
ing manner.
“Each piece had its own chal
lenges at varying degrees,”
Gattis said. “Some sections
were easier, which allowed us to
spend our time working on
music that was fun but not con
stantly challenging, which helps
keep us on pace.”
FROM 1B
Wrestling
swing the momentum
his way.
While his win would
help the Tigers decrease
their deficit, Lumpkin
would continue to lead
after that.
A couple of late wins
for Dawson would give
them some consolation
points, but the Tigers
would lose 46-32.
Later that night,
Dawson would lose to
White County in the
third-place match to fin
ish fourth overall.
On Saturday, Jett won
the 75-pound weight
class before O’Keeffe
won the 135-pound
class and McBrayer won
the 155-pound class.