|
-
The Brosmer family has carried on its cane-making tradition since the early 1900s, to the chagrin of the family dentist. |
By RYAN BROSMER
YOUTH CORRESPONDENT
Every year as the holiday season draws near, even before winter has begun to settle in, there are many signs of its impending arrival.
Decorations, sales and snow all are harbingers of a winter wonderland for most people. But for my family, things don't get started until the first few batches of candy canes are cooling.
Around the end of November, there comes a time when a few generations of the Brosmer family gather in the basement of the eldest and begin the holiday tradition of candy-making. This story has its roots in early-1900s Ohio, four generations before mine, at Brosmer's Candy shop.
For me, personally, things started in my great-grandfather's house, but the thing I remember most about those times is drinking water out of Lions Club mugs with stitched designs trapped between the transparent plastic of the cup.
Not much else comes to mind from those days; I was young and was content to stare at my drink until the candy was ready to be consumed.
With the passing of Grandpa Brosmer, the tradition was inherited by his son, my grandpa Bill Brosmer. This is where my memories really come into play. My kickoff to winter always began in their basement in Maryland: the smell of sugar in the air, spliced with the likes of peppermint, licorice and sassafras.
Back then, it was still just a family tradition, a holiday hobby, an excuse to gather the whole family without having to call it a reunion. I was still too young in those days to be of much help, but it takes only a little practice to be able to put a hook in a candy cane.
The family gatherings always revolved around batches of candy canes. Sugar, corn syrup, a little flavoring, a lot of heat and hard work are all it takes. Having the whole family there just seemed like an added bonus.
Everything used in making the candy canes, fudge, butterscotch and other sweets is original from four generations back, or it's as genuine as possible. And everyone in attendance is genuinely in good spirits and grateful for each other.
Now allow me to fast forward a bit to the present. My grandparents have retired and relocated from Maryland to West Virginia, and the candy-making business went with them. While the rest of the country was sleeping off Thanksgiving dinner or still standing in line for sales, my family was once again on its way to kick off the season, Brosmer style.
Friends and family from far and wide converged upon the unfinished basement where those familiar, sweet scents always linger. Candy-making season was under way.
There were four generations of family in that house, from my grandpa, the ringleader of this whole affair, to my dad and his sister and cousins, my brother and me, along with a few fresh faces crawling and drooling around the crowd--all there to celebrate a tradition that reaches back through many lives.
It was a time to slow things down and take stock of what's really important in life, before getting caught up in the rush of the holidays and the uncertainty of a new year.
RYAN BROSMER is a freshman
