Celts and War--

The Celts were people of war. They charged into battle naked, dyed themselves (all of themselves) blue, and screamed like Comanches. They cut off heads of their foes and stuck them on their walls or belts. It would make sense then that much of Celtic oral tradition follows the triumphs and falls on the fields on battle.

Canned Goods

On average, I wouldn’t say this is something I think about a ton, but i’m sure that due to moving away from home and being on my own again, it has been brought to the forefront of my mind. What might that be? Well, it’s my mother’s cooking :) and something in particular that I wanted to focus on, is a knowledge that I feel is pretty common amongst members

of the church (that may be a sheltered view, but it’s how I feel)...and that would be canning or bottled goods.

The time of canned goods dates way back into the 18th century and was inspired, we could say, by the Emperor Napoleon Bonaparte. He didn’t come up with the idea, but he put the word out that something needed to change in the aspect of food and war. The actual driving force of canning goods came about as a military strategy of all things. The French were in great need of a better way to increase and also maintain a regular food supply which was not an easy task...especially for large armies. Hence why a reward of 12,000 francs (a lot of money) was offered for whomever could achieve such a task. It wasn’t until about 15 years later that Nicholas Appert formulated the idea of preserving food in bottles. From that time on, it was adopted by many other countries and continued to develop and remain in high demand in countless wars around the world. In fact, it wasn’t until many, many years later that the act of canning or bottling goods actually became a common household activity.

Now I don’t profess myself to be a canning enthusiast, but it is something that I have learned over time as i have spent time around my Mom and helped out with the task.

Undoubtedly, i am extremely grateful for this knowledge and especially the instant access to canned beans, pickles, salsa, peaches, and many other homemade items. These are some things I really do enjoy about home! Now I have not yet had to try it out by myself, but for 3 of my siblings who now have families of their own, canning goods is an annual event that they participate in...thanks to the the knowledge that they acquired through my mom and other canning buffs in the area and of course, through practice and hard work.

Although we didn’t have to can food for an army, sometimes it would seem that way when there is not a inch of kitchen countertop insight due to the lavish amounts of jars EVERYWHERE. What once was a tactic to winning a war, now has become an essential aspect of a lifestyle and health for my family and many others around the world.