Memory Lane & Family Traditions
Just about dead center of the mouth of the mighty Chesapeake Bay is a small island and fishing village known as Smith Island, Maryland. Settled by the British in the 1600s, it remains Maryland’s only inhabited island group in the Chesapeake Bay region. Locals still speak Elizabethan dialect of sorts. Comprised of three villages — Tylerton, Ewell and Rhodes Point — its population is around 250 people. Located 10 miles offshore, a limited ferry service transports visitors and inhabitants to the mainland, sometimes only offering one trip a day.
A traditional Smith Island Cake made of yellow cake and fudge icing.
Famous Cake
Smith Island Cakes have been made since the 1800s when women on the island sent them with their husbands on the autumn oyster harvest. The cakes were the perfect way of reminding the watermen their families loved and missed them while ensuring they were in their prayers for a successful harvest and a safe return.
Smith Island Cakes are super thin layers of cake, usually stacked eight layers high. This, of course, maximizes the icing potential. The most popular and “traditional” flavor of Smith Island cake features a yellow cake with chocolate fudge frosting.
I’m sure the men enjoyed the eight layers of icing, as it provided much-needed energy from the rigors of working on the open water, in the hot sun, fishing, crabbing and raking for oysters. Plus, it was a tasty treat to look forward to. I’m sure it was the highlight of their day.
The Maryland legislature named Smith Island cakes the state dessert in 2008, but the cakes are still primarily a locally known delicacy of the eastern shore.
Mom and Samantha long ago.
Desserted Habits?
I first learned of these wonderful cakes while vacationing at Ocean City, on Maryland’s eastern shore, as a kid. Restaurants offered them, usually changing flavors weekly. Favorites, besides the traditional yellow cake/fudge frosting, included yellow cake/peanut butter fudge icing, cookies and cream, and red velvet cake, to name a few.
As time went by, I got older, married, had a child of my own, and my mom started vacationing with us. She was doing the same as her mom and picked up a funny habit from my grandmother. When vacationing together, they would always eat dessert first. Why? How many times have you eaten a scrumptious meal and been too full to eat dessert? This remedied the problem. Wisdom comes with age, eh?
Samantha with one of her art projects and ribbons from the fair.
Paradoxical Memories
Writing this, it’s the end of August. The nights are cooling off, and I notice our deck plants are starting to fad while sipping my morning coffee. My favorite season is fast approaching. It’s funny what cues trigger the brain, reminding us of our locked-away memories.
August always held special memories for me. It’s the time of year when the golden rod blooms and the rhythmic whining of cicada’s drones in the evening, signaling fall is on its way. During my cop job duties, it meant working the county fair. I always enjoyed that detail.
My wife and daughter usually came every night so we could have dinner together before seeing how my daughter did on her art, flower and vegetable entries. Samantha was at her first fair, swaddled in blankets, at the insistence of mom, at two months of age.
During the fair we were allowed to take our motors home, as it was usually after midnight when we finished. I always enjoyed the cool air on the ride home. Yep, August was always a pretty good month for me.
Slip & Fall
It was two weeks before Thanksgiving, and mom slipped on black ice on her driveway, cracking her pelvis and several vertebrae. Tests revealed she had Multiple Myeloma, a blood cancer that attacks the bone. After lengthy stays in the hospital and nursing home, she only wanted one thing — to come home. Her goal? To sit on her deck surrounded by large plants and sip coffee while listening to the birds sing.
We made it happen on Memorial Day weekend. The next morning, the phone rang at 7 a.m. It was mom and I was panicked. What’s wrong? Amid loud bird chirping, mom said, “Good morning! I just wanted you to know I’m having my coffee, and everything is perfect!” This was music to my ears, and I admit to a little eye leakage, too.
As spring progressed, so did mom’s cancer. Hospice got involved, with mom dying on the last day of August. I wasn’t there when she died, I’m sure that’s how she wanted it. But I had the opportunity to tell her I loved her, and no boy had a better mom, the day before. With all the strength she could muster, she partially sat up and hugged me goodbye. No boy had a better mom.
While Tank may not eat 150 pounds of food a day, he tries to drink 25 gallons of water.
Just Do It
So now, when on vacation, at least for one evening, we start supper with dessert, a sweet appetizer if you will. We always look for Smith Island Cake if they have it, and enjoy it, as mom would. Sometimes, traditions just need to be followed and memories cherished.
