My grandmother, Lois Henley

was a reader and a poet and a source of solace and inspiration to me.  Today, I am eating her potato soup from one of two large mugs that I asked for as my mom and aunt and uncles were determining the future of so many possessions collected in the beautiful house in Glendora.  They are chipped and have ears of corn on the side and black flecks on the inside that look exactly like the pepper in the soup.  When I asked her how, oh how, did she make this delicious soup, she looked very wise and told me, "It's very complicated!!"  She then proceeded to put "some potato; some celery, but just the leaves will do, they're very important; some onion, if you have it; some salt"  into a pot, browning the onions a little in butter first.  She covered them with water, waited until the small potato cubes were soft and then mashed it all up with a potato masher.  Add "some milk and butter, however much you have, and pepper, lots of pepper and that's it."  Not scientific, always good.