The LDS church owns a large pear orchard and local church members volunteer to pick pears that'll be canned for the needy. Some years we sell the largest, most glorious pears to Harry and David, in exchange for twice as many lbs. of their smaller pears, to be canned. This year, the pears seem a little smaller . . . but they were still as heavy!
This little anomaly was growing between two twigs and couldn't be wiggled out. Weird!So here goes the poem, with photos of my friends on a "Ladies Night Out." (We picked for 2 hours, then went to DQ to reward ourselves!) Please note that although we are acting as free labor, some of us still wear our designer sunglasses! And also, note that some pears look like a baby's bottom.
Oregon is known for it's fruit without shape
It's not a banana and it's not for apes
It grows on trees with branches so scratchy
And we get to pick them in clothes that are patchy
From dawn until dusk, the members all gather
At the orchard where we all work up a lather
Dripping with sweat in the hot August heat
While meeting old friends that we love to greet
We pick them and size them and load up our sacks
While straining our muscles and breaking our backs
Then fill up the bins before it gets dark
Trust me, my friends -- it's no walk in the park!
But we love to do it, year after year
Picking the fruit for one reason that's clear
We work really hard, but it's really a pleasure
For the Lord has given us blessings unmeasured
The least we can do, for a few hours a week
Is give back what we can, to get what we seek.
5 comments:
That sounds like such a fun girls night! Can I come?
I read your comment on Annie's blog, and just wanted to vouch for the reality of the salami diet. She's just such a celebrity, isn't she? We always knew she was destined for fame:)
Bravo! I so wish I could have been there, I love Oregon and I love pears and I love girlfriends and I love DQ. (Extreme Chocolate Chunk Blizzard).
And I promise to come clean about the Salami Diet pronto.
What is this about a Salami Diet? I will go pick pears and give them to the needy if it means I can keep and eat the fatty foods and call it a diet! Just joking, I was actually reading this wishing I could be there sampling the fresh pears, they are some of my favorite! Sounds like a fun and worth while thing to do with friends.
I AM SO PROUD! You're always welcome to republish my work -- unless it's Caldecott material. Then it's copyrighted. (Tee, hee!)
Thanks for the great photo illustrations. I took my camera the night we went with the youth, but I was too busy picking pears to take any pictures. Wait...did you pick any pears? Or is that basket around your neck just there for a photo op? (Ha, ha!)
I love the poem!! keeps me smilin'
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