Farmer James T. - A time to celebrate: let us keep the feast

A Time To Celebrate

Let Us Keep the Feast

James T. Farmer III

Foreword by Jenna Bush Hager

Photographs by Kristen Scott & Emily J. Followill

A Time To Celebrate

Let Us Keep the Feast

Digital Edition 1.0

Text 2015 James T. Farmer III

Photographs 2015 as noted

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced by any means whatsoever without written permission from the publisher, except brief portions quoted for purpose of review.

Gibbs Smith

P.O. Box 667

Layton, Utah 84041

Orders: 1.800.835.4993

www.gibbs-smith.com

ISBN: 978-1-4236-3867-4

Photo 2015 Kristen Scott

Photo 2015 Kristen Scott

Throughout the following pages, my dear friend James Farmer writes of how entertaining is so ingrained in us as Southerners, that entertaining has truly become the backbone of our heritage and a calling card of Southern Hospitality. Even a Texas gal can identify with that!

James and I share a special bond that has brought us together in many ways over the years. From our ties as Editors-at-Large at Southern Living and our paths crossing at the Today show, to being raised by graceful, beautiful Southern women, we have developed a genuine friendship, mutually cherishing our families and celebrating with them.

Something James and I also share is the common belief that as Southerners, we have an inherent knowledge of entertaining, and the urge to execute that knowledge thats more than skin deepits running deep in our veins. To echo Jamess sentiments throughout this book, We get it from our mamas, who got it from their mamas. And mine is no exception.

As First Lady, my mother personified a natural entertainer and brought a healthy dose of Southern hospitality and Texas spirit to the White House too. Whether it was entertaining foreign dignitaries or a quiet family supper in the residence, she taught us how to bring people together at the dinner table with her graceful nature and elegant poisemaking everyone from prime ministers to my sister and me feel at home in the White House.

From inaugural balls and campaign rallies to weddings and Christmas parties, excuses for a celebration were plentiful in the White House, and I learned quickly by watching and paying attention as my mother executed these events with ease. My wedding on the Ranch was no exception, as a celebration at home has a more momentous feel to it, especially as I return there with my husband and daughter. Having that special connection to the land is a legacy I share with my father and grandfather, and I hope to gift that to my children as well.

Celebrations take on new meanings as we get older. They evolve from sweet sixteens and weddings to baby showers and first birthdays. They serve as a reminder to us of just how cyclical life is, and how every moment should be treasured and celebrated.

James is a refreshing voice in our generation and reminds us of the importance in finding the time to celebrateeven the littlest of lifes events. And, of course, adding a little Texas style and Southern flare never hurt! Heres to finding a time to celebrateeach and every day!

Jenna Bush Hager

Photo 2015 Kristen Scott

We Southerners simply delight at the opportunity to throw a party, for we can treat any occasion as a celebration! I wholeheartedly believe that our ability to celebrate is part of our hospitable disposition and reputation. My sympathy goes out to other geographic locales not automatically associated with the word hospitality.

Truly, yall, I believe one of our proudest moments in history was saving the city of Savannah from Shermans fiery campaigna testament to Southerners celebrating for any cause! Besides ingeniously inebriating the Union Army with Chatham Artillery Punch (a blend of liquors thatll knock any army off its boots), Savannah citizens simply did what they knew bestthey hosted a party for the invading army. Why would an invasion be a cause for celebration? Well, for one thing, the city was spared from the blaze of war and lives on to this day as the jewel of Georgias coast. Call it a bizarre form of self-preservation, but it worked. Sherman gave President Lincoln the lovely city of Savannah as a gift rather than a torched and ruined token of war.

A celebration of any sort lights a fire in our bellies to fluff around the house. One must polish grandmothers silver, borrow flowers from obliging neighbors (or cemeteriesshhh, dont tell), cut the crust off the cucumber sandwiches and roll out enough cheese straws to feed Pharaohs armynot to mention making enough chicken salad and pimento cheese for said army. Whether someone is getting married or buried, yall, we serve chicken salad.

Fluff is a very technical term we use in the design business as well. I relish whenever a client calls to say they need a little fluff before a party. Trust me, I know that means this clients home needs a couple more pillows on the sofa, flowers in any julep cup not being used, a couple of urns with flamboyant ferns billowing forth their fronds and a pair of lamps for the buffet. Who knows, I may even sneak in an Oushak rug for the dining room while Im at it!

Weddings, showers, birthdays, retirements and lifes many other milestones and seasonal splendors all lend themselves as reasons to celebrate. Even the luxury of a Sunday evening at home with familyand friends who we think of as familycan be a cause for celebration. In fact, I love the simplicity of a dinner with friends as much as an oyster roast for a hundred folks. These events may be grand or humble, planned or spontaneous, tradition-filled or newly christened, yet they all contain a thread of joy. This joyous thread ordains each event as genuine and heartfelt and ties back to our reputationafter all, Southern hospitality is our calling card!

I can feel the mantle of responsibility from generations before me whenever I entertain. A Southern mantra for lifebut especially for entertainingis thats the way Mama did it. Our mamas and mamas mamas before them have set a precedent and tradition for each generation, hopefully to be preserved and handed down for those to come. Though twists on traditions keep them fresh, it is our familial duty, privilege and honor to continue celebrating our history and heritage. The celebration of heritage is not a particularly unique element to Southern society, by any means, but how our mamas did itfood, flowers, venues and menusset a tone of reverence for our traditions.