The Twelve

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Lemon New York Cheesecake

Place a pack of graham crackers in a plastic bag. Close the bag with just enough air for you to pound the crackers. Smash the crackers until there is nothing left but crumbs in the bag.

 

Watching my grandmother do it is a great sight to see. She'd crush the bag as if she was angry that the crackers didn't come crushed already, yet, the broke so gracefully. She makes sure she doesn't bang the love out of them. I guess there is a method to her madness. I just wanted to believe you just punch the bag. "Be careful not to burst the bag," she repeats.

 

As she does the crumbling, I am scrambling around the kitchen, Picking up and dropping off ingredients: such as a mail man; who also seemed to rave about my grandmother's cheesecake. She made it so much she knew to recipe like the moon knows night. Studying even the smallest of her techniques has been a lesson within itself.

 

From mixing the crust to mixing the batter, she would sing her oh-so-trusty church songs that I knew too well. So if which I never even heard of before. She would always sing right on key with the birds that were perched in the peach tree. I love to look out the window above the sink at the vast layout of the countryside. Having the birds sing, the wind chimes chiming, and the luminous light seemed to warm the crust and her soul.

 

“Zora, get the crust out set it to the side,” she announces.

 

I try to clear the counters of my gathered mess to place the crust to the side. After tem minutes the crust has a shiny, golden color.

 

The crust sits to the side until we pour the batter inside. So she comes from the living room to start up again. Collecting my ingredients once again, I am ready to begin the next steps.

 

“You ready?”

“Yes mam,” I reply.

 

Grandma adds as many ingredients as I bring them over to her. As she adds the cream cheese, sugar and vanilla in the mixing bowl she sets the mixer on the counter. As she continues to join all the ingredients the mixer makes the mixture extremely light and thick. Next was the sour cream and lemon juice.

 

The tricky part was next, as my grandma put it. Add the two eggs, one at a time until evenly fused together. She told me if you over-mix it the batter would become too fluffy and the cake would not set correctly; under-mixing it would make the eggs uneven and the cake will appear patchy when it set.

 

We were approaching my favorite part; the forty minutes of leisurely in-between time. Waiting for the oh-so-delicate oven to heat back up took a little time, so I made sure I turned it on a few minutes before. Once the oven is as warm as it’ll ever be the cake it is placed inside; preferably on the top rack.

 

Once the cake is baking, grandma starts to relax. She has been adding on the house recently because she said it needed to be updated. So she goes to original living room. Her motto is everything has a place and there is a place for everything. Her bible is in the place it has always been; on the small table next to her vintage couch. Then she just sits and studies like no tomorrow. As she sits I try to think of something to talk to her about. If there is something that was bothering me that week I could just talk to her about it. It could be about anything; from love to life to why the sky is blue. I love talking with my Grandma. She is so insightful and has all the right things to say even if I don’t want to hear it. She even quotes scriptures that would leave me something to further continue thinking about. This would usually take roughly forty minutes so we make almost perfect timing. So as we wrap up the conversation, the aroma of the cake wraps around our noses.

 

You can tell if the cake is done if the center is almost completely set. Next is the topping part. We always use cherries but other fruit could be used. Refrigerate the cake for 4 hour before serving.

 

Sunday dinners are the perfect time to dig into the cheesecake. I always look forward to sitting at the table with family, enjoying wonderful cake. After coming from church being spiritually full, it’s time to come home to become physically full. I’ll never forget the talks with grandma and I hope we will continue to have them. Grandma always says you are never fully satisfied until you had a piece of dessert.

Is This What We Call Justice?

Injustice

Does a tragedy have to occur for us to open our eyes? When I read "Trayvon Martin by: Josiah Payne," I thought of this question. I don't believe justice was served in a court of law. This leaves me questioning the true meaning of justice in America. Seeing a young African-American male shot in cold blood by a hispanic man is not your average dealing; it should have not been handled that way. 

The poem "Trayon Martin" really expressed the damage that was done before, during, and after Trayvon's death. Once the news came about this particular shooting, America seemed to be a little more interested then usual. There was plenty of controversy between the people and media. This incident escalated quickly. The first time I saw the story in the news I was shocked, but not as surprised to see yet another murder of a young  black man. Further investigation into the case revealed more to the story. The Stand Your Ground Law had lots to do with the trial. It is a type self-defense law that gives individuals the right to use reasonable force to defend themselves without any requirement to evade or retreat from a dangerous situation. The attorney had used this case as a opportunity to repeal the law. In this case it didn't work. I don't think Zimmerman used reasonable force. You cannot tell me that this law has worked in every time it has been applied. He took a life, that he didn't give.

In the poem, it said "a nation to ponder." That is all that is left to do. Just a couple days ago the verdict was not guilty. The man who was trialed for the murder of Trayvon Martin was found not guilty. This was the most remarkable thing about the whole case was the verdict. There are many unhappy people as a result; including me. There was plenty of chaos about the whole situation, but also positive feedback. There has been protests, rallies, and other gestures to show support towards the community. I was still shocked, yet relieved to see so many positive examples. There are still wrongs to be corrected. Justice has not yet been served fully. I guess we all doing the best we can. I just hope that we can all look back on the last February and progress.

Only Me