Tuesday, June 06, 2006

Cherry Time - My little House on the Prairie Moment

" 'Fine fruit is the flower of commodities.’
It is the most perfect union of the useful and the beautiful that the earth knows.
Trees full of soft foliage; blossoms fresh with spring bounty; and, finally, fruit, rich, bloom-dusted, melting, and luscious.”
- Andrew Jackson Downing

I never could have imagined just how much fun it would be to pick cherries off my OWN cherry tree, nor how much WORK would be involved in harvesting it! Our efforts yielded 13 kilos of ripe, rich, red cherries.

I hadn´t grown up around fruit trees, so this really was a"first time" for me. When we got up on Saturday morning and saw how ripe the cherries were, we knew that we had to pick them that very day or we would loose them.

Sometimes life is like that too isn´t it? If we don´t grab "the bull by the horns" we might miss an opportunity that God puts in our way that has the potential of harvesting alot. It could be the difference between harvesting and just having spoiled fruit. Maybe it is having a listening ear to your son/daughter that "harvests" a new closeness or taking time to visit a sick friend that harvests a new lease of hope of encouragement in them.

Picking the cherries, as the saying goes, "You can't pick cherries with your back to the tree," means just that...you have to have your whole face in it! I know...it´s the only way to get a good grip!!!

There we were, bowl in hand, pulling the cherries and I couldn´t help but feeling a rush of excitement and contentment. It felt great to be in contact with the earth and it´s law of sowing and reaping.... Yet you know that you are just a "stranger" in this process. I didn´t even plant the cherries and certainly didn´t do anything to make them grow.....that´s God. I think our lives our like that too. God is so good to us,that He allows us to be involved in the process of "harvesting" in our lives and in the lives of those around us . To reap of what we haven´t sown time and time again.

Unfortunately my excitement about this "contact with mother-earth" didn´t quite catch on to Son no 2, who didn´t find pulling little red balls off a tree at all exciting!! At least not until he got on the ladder and started picking off the cherries on the higher branches. I mean, that provided the element of risk he needed to make cherry picking an "almost " fun experience!!!

Here I am, the proud cherry picker, with "the fruits of our labours!"It is amazing the amount of fruit just one tree can produce! I believe that just Lh and I were left with a feeling of satisfaction at our baskets of fruit......the kids had gone on to other things....But this was just a part of the harvesting process....we now were faced with the next step....De-pitting and storing some 10 kilos of cherries.

We of course gave away the first fruits (haha) and seeing as making jam was not an option due to lack of jam jars (can you tell this is our first time!!!) we were left with the de-pitting and freezing option.

And here we are around the table, the next day, de-pitting cherries. This time, No 1 was with us and that made for one of those family moments which could be likened too what would have taken place in the old days where everyone gathered around the table and pitched in with the work, while sharing stories and anecdotes.

Our modern version of this tradition involved one family member who continually asked if this was the last batch, and the other who went off in search of music to provide "ambiance" for the occasion!! I am sure the pioneers didn´t have to deal with that!!!!

The cherry juice that filled the trays was an amazing reward to the taste buds for the "blood red" colour our hands were turning! Even today, several days later my hands are still "tainted"slightly!

We had a real production line going of de-pitters and then baggers.... the kids taking turns to bag to stop from de-pitting! And we must have made about 20 small freezer bags of de-pitted cherries or more. We lost count!

For us, this was a bit of fun, and a little insight to help us understand in a small way, what life was like for people in back in the days when they depended on these supplies to make it through long, harsh winters.

We certainly don´t depend on these cherries to make it through the winter, but I am so grateful for the experience, which I hope my kids will remember fondly later even if they can´t now.