"Abide in
me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit by itself, unless it
abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in me. I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing. If anyone does not abide in me he is thrown away like a branch and withers; and the branches are gathered, thrown into the fire, and burned. If you abide in me, and my words abide in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you." - John 15:4-7 (ESV)
It was a nice break from hotter days these past, few
weeks. My family and I hopped into the car and with an unplanned destination
chose to have egg rolls and Pho soup from a distant, favorite Vietnamese
restaurant.
“Let’s go!” we all cried in unison and changed our mind about skipping the
morning agreement of fruit picking in yet, an unexplored area nearby.
November is my favorite month because I know the
weather starts to cool off. I am also reminded that “persimmons” are due to be
enjoyed this time. We don’t know that there is a persimmon picking farm nearby.
The winding, 2-lane roads offered majestic views of
ranches with horses freely roaming, a creek filled with water that my husband
thought it was a lake at first, and a well-controlled green houses prompted me
to take a pic as I gazed at those neat rows of plants or vegetables. Not
forgetting the views of the mountain from up ahead, hills with green
vegetation and even a stone quarry it seemed.
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| greenhouses |
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| some free roaming horses |
My son parked his car and immediately, my husband was
offered some buckets of his choosing and he got 3 pruners. Many trees of
persimmons met us and they were only a few steps away from where the buckets,
pruners, and caretakers were.
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| rows of Persimmon trees |
It was exciting to see many fruits. But we didn’t know,
the harvest season started even as earlier as October. Many fruits were a little
higher and perhaps, the fruits on the lower branches were already picked. Still…We
were all excited and wished we knew even then. Yet, grateful we found this
place and how cheap! Nothing could beat 60 cents per pound because out in the
markets, I would get those persimmons for 99 cents a pound or worse a dollar
something more. I left the task of reaching for the fruits attached on higher
branches to my son and my husband. They were known as “Fuyu persimmons” and oh,
so sweet! Crispy like apples. That was how I wanted them, not the other kind
called “Hachiya” which was more mushy like and you had to wait for it to be
ripe before it could be enjoyed. Fuyu for me was the best!
“It’s enough, you guys!” I yelled when I saw the bucket
was filled halfway.
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| freshly-picked Fuyu persimmons |
“Only one more,” my husband replied with an excited
tone of voice.
“Watch out!” my husband warned at one point. “There are
rotting ones that fell on the ground. Don’t step on them.”
We took a few pictures, saw many more other trees we
could no longer approach! And a tall mountain in the distance.
By the time my husband carried the green bucket back to
that center, it weighed 14 pounds. That was a lot of fruit for only 8 dollars
something.
I got to share some with my friend and my husband with
a co-worker who he always worked with daily. There were still lots left in our
kitchen counter.
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| Done for the day! |
“It’s open until December, they said,” my husband told
me and my son.
The three of us, grinning ear to ear, agreeing in
silence that we would definitely go back.
Deep inside, we knew…
Not only they are cheap, sweet and not that far to go
to. There is nothing sweeter than the three of us creating that memory, being
reminded to always “look up” not just to reach the fruits but to remember where
the good things in life come from. Instilling the truth in our hearts that our
lives can either produce good fruits as Christians if we are abiding by God’s
Word or dropping like those rotten ones if we stray away from Jesus.
