My mother always kept a can of bacon grease on the back of the stove and used it for everything short of moisturizer. Cornbread, fried potatoes, fried pork chops, silky-soft green beans, and more. Now and then, I cook a homesick sunny-side-up egg by gently basting it with bacon grease. My Kentucky version of Proust’s madeleine.

Nikki Hardin is a writer of stories, musings, and memories. Her poetry has been published in Riverteeth Journal. She was the founder and publisher of skirt!, a monthly women’s magazine in Charleston, South Carolina. You can reach her at nikki@thedailynikki.com.