Preparing for a holiday meal began in earnest a day or more before the big event. We baked bread, rolled piecrusts, soaked beans, molded Jell-O, browned sausage, prepped vegetables, hauled down dishes from the top shelf, polished silverware... Note that I used the word “we” as everyone helped. One job only Dad could do, however, was make the trip to the liquor store for the rare bottle of wine, Mogen David Concord Grape, that graced the party.
