SHELLING PURPLE HULL PEAS

Shelling Purple Hull Peas with Tut and Dell

Remember those summer days sitting in the yard under the shade tree and passing the time shelling peas?  Those were the good old days, no air conditioning or TV to keep everyone in the house so people actually had time to spend with each other.  This picture is my brother Richard and myself helping our grandparents shell peas in the cool of the shade tree in their front yard.  The store is in the background and on the left side of the picture is one of the large scuppernong grapes vines that those delicious grapes came from.  Remember how your fingers were purple after finishing shelling the peas?  We would try to remove the stains with lemons but some of it was going to remain and would just have to wear off.  The peas were usually fresh out of the garden so were not dry and were easy to shell, much better than what we get from the grocery stores today.  Grandmother Dell would cook up a big pot of peas and some cornbread for supper and I do not think there was a better meal on this Earth.