Show ate MA F 1 11 7 1 BEAT GRAPE GLUE t cognev by MARY K CHEATHAM agnes was so thrilled over her new home that she realize what a menace the grape grope arbor would prove to her newly found happiness until it challenged her to the supreme test WHEN HEN they bought the house agnes hadn haan t thought much about the grape arbor she knew it was there of course but it was spring and the ten drills were just beginning to green out along the back walk now it was summer and the vines were heavy with purple clusters boy isn t that something said greg at breakfast our own vine yard right in our own back yard and it if there s one thing I 1 like to eat it s fresh homemade grape j jelly elly agnes felt a twinge of misgivings but even then she failed to lecog nize the arbor tor for what it was a menace to her marriage guess III I 1 have to make some she answered with lust just a shade of doubt ru go out and pick the grapes right after I 1 get you off to work fine beamed greg swallow ing the last of his coffee mom al ways makes it with pure grape juice aice and sugar better call her it if you have any trouble oh III I 1 II 11 manage answered ag nes smiling with a great show of confidence after all I 1 learned to cook didn dian t I 1 sure did hon ron agreed greg reaching for his hat got to run along now good luck with the j jelly elly they exchanged their usual after breakfast bride and groom kiss and greg hurried out the front door when the breakfast dishes were carefully cleared up agnes took a dishpan and approached the arbor it was pleasant there working in the sunshine to the busy humming of bees she felt the lightness come back into her heart after all any body could learn to make jelly dew lay heavily upon the purple globules as she placed them bunch by bunch in the dishpan she breathed deep of their winey fragrance and smiled in her new sense of ownership making jelly called her neigh bor across the back fence those grapes always did make the best jellel going to try it agnes called back I 1 ve never made any before but I 1 have a good cookbook and I 1 think I 1 can do it all right it s easy said the neighbor I 1 never bother with a cookbook my self agnes took her grapes into the kitchen and began washing and sort ing them at the sink when they were ready she put them into a saucepan and crushed them slightly as it said in the cookbook she added a small amount of water and brought them to a slow boil letting them cook gently until the juice had run out straining the juice through a cloth was a messy business but easy enough as she remembered having seen her mother do it at home I 1 wonder she thought why I 1 t pay more attention to elly jelly making she brought out the little glasses and sterilized them until they were crystal bright in the grip of a guiv ering excitement she measured the juice and sugar now came the frightening part tensely she propped the cookbook within view while bringing the juice to a vigor ous boil she added the sugar and stirred carefully until it had dis solved she studied the jelly test pictures until her eyes ached one picture showed the jelly ci dripping ripping from the spoon in two drops the other two drops running together and leaving the spoon in one flake the important thing was to know just when this took place back and forth agnes gazed from picture to spoon from spoon 0 n to pie ture until both seemed to blend into one at this point she thought the mixture had neared the jellying stage but her eyes ached s so 0 from their intentness she was no longer certain whether two drops had really run oft off the spoon or she had just imagined it better cook it a little longer she thought to be sure slightly after the time specified she poured the jelly into the hot glasses not until then did she relax her nerves she realized had been pounding like trip hammers As she tidied the kitchen agnes gazed with pride at the glasses on the utility cabinet her first jellel it looked a trifle dark but then 7 ge 1 T AX za W greg she cried see if your folks would like to come over to dinner we 11 II have crispy little biscuits and grapes were dark naturally she had a good d waiting for greg when he came from work I 1 thought we might try a little tor for dessert she suggested bring ing out one of the glasses that s right greg recalled hap grape jelly he plunged a spoon enthusiastically into the glass he pulled hard great grape glue he cried what have we here agnes stared astonished at the gooey blob on the spoon fine sticky threads trailed behind it from the glass like fronds of cotton candy she blinked back the tears just in time and changed her ex cla mation to a laugh if only she bad had thought to try it first perhaps she suggested we could spread it on paper to catch flies file ONE 0 NE of the tears spilled over the edge of her laugh and greg caught her to him jurn never mind he soothed it tastes good any how he kissed her and they both nibbled at the spoon like two chil dren sharing a lollypop when you try it tomorrow he mistakenly continued mom can tell you what you did wrong agnes pulled stiffly away and be gan stacking dishes she shoved the euy jelly glasses viciously out of sight and went around the rest of the eve rung feeling vaguely irritated at greg ensconced behind the eve ning paper he appeared not to no tice he even failed to notice when lucille called though he usually liked to twit her about her conver lations with the girls why don dent t you use com commercial mercia pectin asked lucille when agnes had confided her failure then you can use the short boil method and it s practically fool proof because greg s mom doean t agnes answered crossly its it s got to be the long boil method or noth mg ing fiddlesticks concluded lucille buy the pectin and come to the card club tomorrow afternoon but agnes shook her head stub borely no old grape elly jelly she said is going to stand in the way of my wedded bliss she went at it again the next morning with great determination this time she was careful not to overcook the boiling mass bubl bantly she poured it into the glasses there she thought setting it to cool just let my fine gregory find fault with that she put on her frilliest fril hest apron and smiled at greg over the dinner table this time when he plunged his spoon into the glass he did not have to pull the jelly trickled off the spoon in a ruby stream greg grinned uncertainly won darful stuff for pancakes he sal said d with great restraint agnes checked the most amazing desire to throw something after all it gasn wasn t greg s fault he had a stupid wife wifel she sighed wearily but that eve ning too had a defensive overcast she accepted me the anex pressed apology in greg s goodnight kiss honey he said you know I 1 don t care a hoot about those old grapes the following day was hot but agnes doubled her hours at the kitchen stove the warmer she be came the greater grew her resent meat ment why she asked herself did we ever have to buy a house with an old grape arbora I 1 batch after batch she cooked alternating between syrup and gum somehow she just couldn coulden t get it right grimly she poured the last sticky mess into the glasses not waiting to clear the kitchen she marched upstairs and threw herself across the bed only a silly bride she said would cry over not being able to make elly jelly but the tears soaked into the pillow all the same and discouraged and exhausted she fell fen asleep she awoke with a start at greg s touch on her shoulder late after noon shadows lay across the floor she jumped up guiltily but greg pushed her gently back against the pillows 1 I in home early he said re lax poor kid you re all tired out I 1 knew you could do it he add ed and agnes became aware tor for the first time that be he had something in his band hand he was taking huge bites from a piece of bread and but ter and yes something else gleam ing in jeweled beauty upon the yel low surface that last batch mumbled greg with bis his mouth full has jelled agnes leaped out of bed her face ablaze with excitement goegl she cried see if your folks would like to come over to dm ner well we 11 have crispy little bis cults and she reached out and touched the quivering rubies rubles with a reverent finger great grape glue she breathed rapturously jenyl |