Monday, August 13, 2018

Of peaches and memories....

Monday morning
August 13th, 2018



Here's to the time warp that dwells in the peach,
breathing sweetness and nostalgia in equal parts
as I peel, quarter and dice
at the kitchen sink.

The fragrance of the peach surrounds me,
and the wand of memory emerges....

Suddenly, magically, I am no longer a lady in her nineties!

I am a young wife and mother,
making peach pie for those I love

perhaps a chocolate cake  to go
with a bowl of Red Havens
and a spoonful of ice cream

or canning jars of lusciousness
for winter suppers

while yummy peach jam
bubbles on the stove

or perhaps I am taking the steps of a ladder
up amidst the green leaves of the peach tree
while my hand reaches out  for
a bit of globular heaven

Or I am a mother
coming in from the orchard
hot, and covered in peach fuzz
-- inclined to be a little sharp with the young ones
who impede my way to the shower!!!!

and then we are retired!

regretting the loss of our peach block
but haunting the fruit stands
for a tree-ripened peach
to take home to my loved one

all these lovely memories evoked
by the fragrance of the fruit I hold in my hand.

the magic of time disappears
and I am alone with my peach and my paring knife
and my memories.
grateful for the days that inspire them.

Life is good
The magic of memory 
bewitches me!!

4 comments:

Hill Top Post said...

Oh, those memories. This is just wonderful!

Barb said...

We bought our first Colorado peaches today, Hildred. I remember children with juice running down their chins many, many years ago. I think I'll make a cobbler with ours. I used to make a peach/rum jam that was delicious. Your Header is fantastic - all those blooms!

lil red hen said...

So, so well written! My younger summer days were spent working in the peaches, both picking and packing. In fact, that was my first paying job. No peaches today can compare with the soft, ripe ones we ate straight from the trees.

Sallie (FullTime-Life) said...

Beautiful memories, so beautifully writte. .. peaches do invoke them for me also.... the sight, the feel, the aroma...and that we wait for them so eagerly.