Can You Apply The Principle of Economies Of Scale To Love?
The Art Of Mama Krach Pie Manufacturing by Steve Krach
Back when I was in 4th grade, Grandma Elda came out to visit us in California. It was the end of the school year and my siblings and I were ready to explode with the excitement of summer vacation. We had been aching to begin a summer of total, unrestrained play, but grandma had a more productive and thoughtful plan for our last weekend before summer. “We’re making pies for all your teachers!” She exclaimed. Before we knew it, we were in the car on the way to the grocery store.
When we returned with supplies, grandma created an assembly line with her little workers. My sister Monika, the oldest and most capable, mixed the dough for pie crusts from scratch. I was next in the assembly line, rolling out the dough. Next, grandma would transfer the crust into the pie pan. This was a little too technical for me or my 6-year-old brother, Carter, to handle. Then, Carter, with grandma’s help, would fill the pies with the fruit he had been smashing and mixing. And finally, Elda would put the finishing touches on top and presto! We had our first pie ready to bake. Before you knew it we had our oven filled with pies. In total, I think we made close to 20! I guess you could say we got a little carried away. After we handed them out to our teachers on Monday, we still had 12 pies left. So did the kids get to taste their hard work and have a pie feast?? No way! Grandma made sure everyone in our lives got a pie. The lunch yard supervisors, the coaches, the piano teacher, etc. all received pies until we handed out every single one.
I’ll never forget the wonderful example of kindness, generosity, and energy my grandma set for us that summer. And now that I’m older, I’m even more amazed at her ability to convince 3 hyper, hard-to-control kids to take the time, make the pies and then selflessly give them all away. And the craziest part? My brother, sister and I had a blast making them AND passing them out! It was a great life lesson my siblings and I have never forgotten: it’s better to give than to receive. A truth that epitomizes my Grandma Elda.
