The Quilt Inn Country Cookbook

Aliske Webb

It was all of fifteen cents. A lot of money in those meagre days. She knew she couldn’t

take it all but surely he wouldn’t miss just half the change.

Cal said nothing that day, or evening. Sally felt a smug satisfaction that she was

right. He hadn’t noticed. So, the next morning she did the same thing again. And the

next. Pretty soon, pennies at a time, she had collected the dollar that she needed. She

bought some fabric and needles and made her first quilt. So that was Sally’s “first quilt”

story.

But that was almost fifty years ago. And yet every morning since then, Sally

helped herself to Cal’s loose change. Some days there was a lot of change.

Sometimes, when times were tough, there was not. Over the years Sally was able to

provide many little extras for the family—a special dress for the girls or a baseball

glove for the boys. Cal often bragged on Sally to their friends about what a wonderful

housekeeper she was! She could stretch her housekeeping allowance further than

anyone!

Sally’s “penny larceny” just became a habit, even after they were comfortably off

financially and she had emancipated access to all their money. There was something

special about taking half of Cal’s change every day.

Many years ago, for their twenty fifth wedding anniversary, Sally had her heart

set on a trip to Arizona to see the Grand Canyon. Even though Cal had been laid off

for several months, somehow there always seemed to be lots of change at the end of

the day, to go into Sally’s secret fund. Despite the lean times, they were able to make

the once-in-a-lifetime trip.

“You know Cal died last Spring,” she said finally, quietly. “I was right there at the

end. He was holding my hand. He looked me right in the eye and said ‘Sal Gal’. He

always called me ‘Sal Gal’. He said, ‘Sal Gal, keep the change!’ And he smiled that big

stupid grin of his. That old fox! He knew all along. And he never said a word. Imagine

that!” She shook her head. “All those years, and he never said a word.”

Somehow it seems that great love is not in the big important things you say but

in the little things you never say.

Like in a marriage, a little sauce goes a long way. And, it can add a bit of extra

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Country Cooking