“Could I be your girl, too?" I asked quickly.The large, broad-shouldered man looked away before he answered. "Well, now," he said, as though he had given it deep thought, "I sure do think I would like that.""But," I said, concerned that he hadn't noticed, "I don't look like your other girls.""You mean because you white?"I nodded. "Abinia," he said, pointing toward the chickens, "you look at those birds. Some of them be brown, some of them be white and black. Do you think when they little chicks, those mamas and papas care about that?”
―
Kathleen Grissom,
The Kitchen House
“We a family, carin' for each other. Family make us strong in times of trouble. We all stick together, help each other out. That the real meanin' of family. When you grow up, you take that family feelin' with you.” ― Kathleen Grissom, The Kitchen House
“[Y]et, I wondered why Marshall did not at least attempt a kiss. In many ways, his treatment of me reminded me of the way I had behaved toward the doll that Mamma Mae had given me as a child. I favored it so that I had refused myself of the joy of playing with it, daring to love it only with my eyes. But in doing so, I had denied myself its very purpose.” ― Kathleen Grissom, The Kitchen House
“...but like Mama say, sometimes we got to live it out before we learn.” ― Kathleen Grissom, The Kitchen House
“What the color is, who the daddy be, who the mama is don't mean nothin'. We a family, carin' for each other. Family make us strong in times of trouble. We all stick together, help each other out. That the real meanin' of family.” ― Kathleen Grissom, The Kitchen House
“This world is not the only home. This world is for practice to get things right.” ― Kathleen Grissom, The Kitchen House
“You look at today, chil'. You say, 'Thank you, Lawd, for everythin' you gives me today.' Then you worries about the next day when the next day come.” ― Kathleen Grissom, The Kitchen House
“There is no shame in who I am,” he said. “There is only shame in how I came to be, and that is not my burden to carry.” ― Kathleen Grissom, Glory over Everything: Beyond The Kitchen House
“We all carry burdens from our past, but it is not for others to exploit them.” ― Kathleen Grissom, Glory over Everything: Beyond The Kitchen House
“Chil', there things in this world you don't know about yet. We your family, that never change. Even when you find a white boy and gets married, we still your family. Mama always your mama, Belle always your Belle."I stopped crying. "What about Papa and Ben?" I asked hopefully."They watch out for you just like now. Abinia" - Mama looked into my eyes - "you on the winnin' side. One day might be you lookin' out for us.” ― Kathleen Grissom, The Kitchen House
“What advice do you have for writers working on their first novels?If you feel called to write a book, consider it a gift. Look around you. What assistance is the universe offering you as support? I was given an amazing mentor, a poet, Eleanor Drewry Dolan, who taught me the importance of every word. To my utter amazement, there were times she found it necessary to consult three dictionaries to evaluate one word.” ― Kathleen Grissom
“Take the time you need to learn the craft. Then sit down and write. When you hand over your completed manuscript to a trusted reader, keep an open mind. Edit, edit, and edit again. After you have written a great query letter, go to AgentQuery.com. This site is an invaluable resource that lists agents in your genre. Submit, accept rejection as part of the process, and submit again. And, of course, never give up.” ― Kathleen Grissom
“I always found it unusual that family is most often defined as those who share the same blood. Doesn’t every family begin with partners who don’t share the same DNA?” ― Kathleen Grissom, Glory over Everything: Beyond The Kitchen House
“This world is not the only home. This world is for practice to get things right. Times, the Lawd say, ‘Nope, that mama, that baby Henry, they too sweet to stay away from Me no more. I brings them home.” ― Kathleen Grissom, The Kitchen House
“Pan, I said. "Do you know who can help?"He shook his head. "I will," I said. "What can you do?" he asked."I don't know yet. This is new to me.” ― Kathleen Grissom, Glory Over Everything: Beyond The Kitchen House
“there are times we got to trust the Lawd.” Somehow” ― Kathleen Grissom, The Kitchen House
“I had loved her as a mother, and though she had put forth her best effort to love me as a son, a difference existed after she learned the truth from Delia. Yet I did not hold her responsible; how could I blame her for an inability to love the part of me that I, too, loathed?” ― Kathleen Grissom, Glory over Everything: Beyond The Kitchen House
“Then you go ahead and cry, " Will said. That ended my weeping. Had he asked me not to cry, I would not have been able to stop, but his permission somehow quit my tears.” ― Kathleen Grissom, The Kitchen House
“Mama’s voice shook. “You listen, girl. I’m gonna tell you what happens when you say no to a white man. I watch my own daddy get shot when he saddle up and ride out on a mule to get help for my own sick mama. She havin’ a baby, cryin’ out for help. I standin’ right there when that” ― Kathleen Grissom, The Kitchen House
“We a family, carin' for each other. Family make us strong in times of trouble. We all stick together, help each other out. That the real meanin' of family. When you grow up, you take that family feelin' with you.” ― Kathleen Grissom, The Kitchen House
“[Y]et, I wondered why Marshall did not at least attempt a kiss. In many ways, his treatment of me reminded me of the way I had behaved toward the doll that Mamma Mae had given me as a child. I favored it so that I had refused myself of the joy of playing with it, daring to love it only with my eyes. But in doing so, I had denied myself its very purpose.” ― Kathleen Grissom, The Kitchen House
“...but like Mama say, sometimes we got to live it out before we learn.” ― Kathleen Grissom, The Kitchen House
“What the color is, who the daddy be, who the mama is don't mean nothin'. We a family, carin' for each other. Family make us strong in times of trouble. We all stick together, help each other out. That the real meanin' of family.” ― Kathleen Grissom, The Kitchen House
“This world is not the only home. This world is for practice to get things right.” ― Kathleen Grissom, The Kitchen House
“You look at today, chil'. You say, 'Thank you, Lawd, for everythin' you gives me today.' Then you worries about the next day when the next day come.” ― Kathleen Grissom, The Kitchen House
“There is no shame in who I am,” he said. “There is only shame in how I came to be, and that is not my burden to carry.” ― Kathleen Grissom, Glory over Everything: Beyond The Kitchen House
“We all carry burdens from our past, but it is not for others to exploit them.” ― Kathleen Grissom, Glory over Everything: Beyond The Kitchen House
“Chil', there things in this world you don't know about yet. We your family, that never change. Even when you find a white boy and gets married, we still your family. Mama always your mama, Belle always your Belle."I stopped crying. "What about Papa and Ben?" I asked hopefully."They watch out for you just like now. Abinia" - Mama looked into my eyes - "you on the winnin' side. One day might be you lookin' out for us.” ― Kathleen Grissom, The Kitchen House
“What advice do you have for writers working on their first novels?If you feel called to write a book, consider it a gift. Look around you. What assistance is the universe offering you as support? I was given an amazing mentor, a poet, Eleanor Drewry Dolan, who taught me the importance of every word. To my utter amazement, there were times she found it necessary to consult three dictionaries to evaluate one word.” ― Kathleen Grissom
“Take the time you need to learn the craft. Then sit down and write. When you hand over your completed manuscript to a trusted reader, keep an open mind. Edit, edit, and edit again. After you have written a great query letter, go to AgentQuery.com. This site is an invaluable resource that lists agents in your genre. Submit, accept rejection as part of the process, and submit again. And, of course, never give up.” ― Kathleen Grissom
“I always found it unusual that family is most often defined as those who share the same blood. Doesn’t every family begin with partners who don’t share the same DNA?” ― Kathleen Grissom, Glory over Everything: Beyond The Kitchen House
“This world is not the only home. This world is for practice to get things right. Times, the Lawd say, ‘Nope, that mama, that baby Henry, they too sweet to stay away from Me no more. I brings them home.” ― Kathleen Grissom, The Kitchen House
“Pan, I said. "Do you know who can help?"He shook his head. "I will," I said. "What can you do?" he asked."I don't know yet. This is new to me.” ― Kathleen Grissom, Glory Over Everything: Beyond The Kitchen House
“there are times we got to trust the Lawd.” Somehow” ― Kathleen Grissom, The Kitchen House
“I had loved her as a mother, and though she had put forth her best effort to love me as a son, a difference existed after she learned the truth from Delia. Yet I did not hold her responsible; how could I blame her for an inability to love the part of me that I, too, loathed?” ― Kathleen Grissom, Glory over Everything: Beyond The Kitchen House
“Then you go ahead and cry, " Will said. That ended my weeping. Had he asked me not to cry, I would not have been able to stop, but his permission somehow quit my tears.” ― Kathleen Grissom, The Kitchen House
“Mama’s voice shook. “You listen, girl. I’m gonna tell you what happens when you say no to a white man. I watch my own daddy get shot when he saddle up and ride out on a mule to get help for my own sick mama. She havin’ a baby, cryin’ out for help. I standin’ right there when that” ― Kathleen Grissom, The Kitchen House
