continued from page the nuts. ….

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the nuts. We poured the goo into a greased pan and waited for it to set up. We cut it into small pieces and tasted it.

“I like it a lot,” my husband said.

“It’s got a surprising butterscotch flavor,” I said. “Or caramel … And it has the consistency of fudge. That’s it—it’s blond, buttery fudge.”

But since neither of us has ever tasted this particular old-fashioned candy before, we really don’t know if it’s “right.” We shipped a Christmassy tin container layered with Patience, divinity and wax paper to Texas Margaret and will have to wait for her to try it and give us her verdict— if it tastes like the candy she remembers from her childhood. We both hope it takes her back to those days and brings a smile to her face. We sealed the tin and addressed it to Texas, and I had a thought. Making Patience required patience— standing over a hot stove, carefully monitoring temperatures, beating it for a long, long time, trusting the process even when we were uncertain. And that’s what we’ve been doing since 2022 when we found Gene’s biological family— learning to trust the process, patiently allowing family bonds to develop at their own pace, and savoring the experiences. Whether or not we nailed the recipe, we know one thing for sure: The sweetest discovery isn’t the candy itself, but the opportunity to create new memories with new family. And that was a gift worth waiting for.