This past week I’ve been flashing on Penelope Fitzgerald\u2019s scintillating descriptions of preparing a house. Her novel \u201cBlue Flower,\u201d set in the 18th century, is full of the bright crush of domestic detail, the half-laborious, half-ecstatic ritual of organizing a home. As I was dashing around, making way for my grown kids and friends to migrate, I heard Fitzgerald\u2019s echo \u2014 \u201cgreat dingy snowfalls of sheets, pillow-cases, bolster-cases, vests, bodices, drawers, from the upper windows into the courtyard \u2026 into giant baskets.\u201d I\u2019m not firing up the old Maytag with anything but a switch; still, I note my excitement to make a nest, a safe haven through methodical hands-on work. I bent my head as I came down from the attic, carrying unrolling stored mattresses, shaking goose down through the corners of comforters, slapping pillows to life so they seem just born, cutting flowers for vases. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
We don\u2019t have Christmas decoration like what Fitzgerald describes \u2014 \u201c\u201dmyriad shining points of light threw vast shadows of the fir branches onto the high walls and even across the ceiling.\u201d There are still, always rituals of the kitchen! I took the knives to be sharpened on a whetstone by a local knife sharpener. I have piles of fruit and dried dates and figs, preserved lemons in their jars preserving, prunes in Armagnac. We beat eggs with whisks and crush almonds as Fitzgerald\u2019s staff does – \u201calmond paste baked brown\u201d! – (I\u2019m not missing those soups of rose-hips and onions,bread and cabbage-water, cows\u2019 udders flavored with nutmeg.\u201d) I lugged piles of logs\/coffee logs\/electric heaters inside, but the item of the moment is the one I can\u2019t find \u2014 home covid tests! Safe haven, feast and famine, nice work if you can get it!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
This past week I’ve been flashing on Penelope Fitzgerald\u2019s scintillating descriptions of preparing a house. Her novel \u201cBlue Flower,\u201d set in the 18th century, is full of the bright crush of domestic detail, the half-laborious, half-ecstatic ritual of organizing a … Continue reading