Picking Peaches

Yesterday I found myself knocking on watermelons and squeezing fruit at the grocery story. I have a gift for picking fruit that’s ripe. Hot summer mornings always remind me of the summer job I had the summer before my junior year of high school. That’s when I learned how to distinguish fruit that’s ready to be eaten and fruit that needs to wait a bit. I woke up one more this week thinking back to that summer 10 years ago.

That spring my family had decided raise money for all of us to go to India on a mission trip with YWAM. The trip was going to cost us well over $10,000. And I remember checking the mail each afternoon to see if it had brought us any more support checks from family and friends.

picture taken on the mission trip to india 10 years ago

In order to help with the cost, my mom, my sister (who was 14), and myself decided to pick up a summer job picking peaches for a local fruit farm. I had had pretty major knee surgery that spring, so I remember having to wait to start until I was able to move around without crutches to work. The farm owner paid us cash, a whopping $4.50 per hour, and when Ike (who was 11) came along he would pay him too.

I’ll never forget that summer. The four of us would wake up before the sun came up and make our lunches. Every day we had to wear jeans and long shirts. Jeans, because snakes liked to hide under peach trees to get away from the sun. (peach trees are low to the ground) Long shirts, because the fuzz off ripe peaches burns your bare skin about like fiberglass. We would ride together to the farm, and wait in the car until the sun came up.

rolling hills of my parent's back yard

I have so many fond memories of that summer. I remember the old Vietnam vet that worked with us. He took medicine for schizophrenia with his lunch and really enjoyed the time with my family. I remember friends honking as they drove past the farm on their way to Bremen pool, because they knew I was somewhere on one of the rolling green hills. I remember Ike would stay close to me so he could get the peaches off the bottom of the tree because I couldn’t bend my leg. remember all the good talks with my mom and sister. I remember going home covered and sticky from bombing the rotten peaches at each other.

Those are great memories that I will never forget.

What are some of your favorite summer memories??