I’ve shared the story before how my younger brother and I lived with my grandparents, my dad’s parents, for a little while. This was way back closer to the middle of the last century. In Norman, Oklahoma. And my parents were getting divorced. So my dad made sure my brother and I had a stable home to stay in while they went through the process. And that’s where I first learned about peach preserves, as well as other kinds of fruit preserves.
But peach preserves stand out above the rest. And I’ll tell you why.
Because I’m a peachy kinda guy. OK, that’s not the real reason. True, but not the real reason. The real reason I remember, peach preserves, even more than the rest is because of my Grandmother’s peach cobbler and a little story she and I share.
One time, as she was making one of her peach cobblers from scratch, she gave me one of the peach pits. And she told me to open it up and find the seed. Being the highly curious five year-old boy I was, I did that. I remember thinking how the pit felt like wood. And it even had sort of a crisscross lattice look. So, I was certainly surprised to find a somewhat soft seed inside the “wooden” pit.
“Grandmother,” I blurted out. “Look! I found it!”
“Do you know what that seed can turn into?” she asked.
“No. What?” I replied.
She said, “Take this old spoon outside and dig a small hole and plant that seed inside it and then cover it up with the dirt.”
So, that’s exactly what I did.
And that was that. At least that’s all there was to it for almost another 20 years. But it was about that many years that I was back at their house as an adult, with a lot of extended family, celebrating my grandparents 50th anniversary. And you know how it goes. The three sons, one of which was my dad, brought the families, and each family brought some goodies. So, plenty of good food, relative, seeing each other for the first time in a while, and one particularly delightful treat for me.
Right there on the kitchen counter was a cobbler made with homemade peach preserves.
As I was serving up a slice for myself, Grandmother came in and asked me how I liked it. Of course, I said I loved it. And she said, “Would you believe I got the peaches from that tree right out there in the yard where you planted a seed when you were a little boy?”
I thought that was so cool. Still do. And I doubt that I’ll ever forget that story. What brought it to mind for me today was a line from the second letter. Paul wrote to his protégé, Timothy. It made me think about what God does that. Nobody deserves. He sort of makes us into some peachy preserves. Here’s the line from Paul’s letter:
And the Lord will deliver me from every evil work and preserve me for His heavenly kingdom.
That’s what I wish for you and me today. And here’s some more of…
What I Wish
There are people of the past
And people of today…
They’re standing in lines,
And they’re passing away.
But let’s not talk about that.
Let’s go and find some fun…
Burn our candles at both ends…
Let our wild sides run.
We don’t wanna hear it.
We don’t wanna know why…
‘Cause then maybe we’ll feel near it,
And we’ll break down and cry.
Oh, I wish our world was better.
I wish our world was fair.
I wish we’d get together
And end the grief out there.
Yes, I wish our world was perfect.
And I wish our world was sane.
I wish there was no hatred
Or quest for earthly gain…
That’s what I wish.
There are innocent children
Who were living on dreams.
Now their dreams have exploded
Blown apart at the seams.
And they look to their mothers
And their fathers for help.
But their parents can’t help them
‘Cause they can’t help themselves.
We don’t want to hear it.
We don’t want to know where…
Just as long as it’s not us…
Who are we to care?
Oh, I wish our world was better.
>I wish our world was fair.
>I wish we’d get together
And end the grief out there.
Yes, I wish our world was perfect.
And I wish our world was sane.
I wish there was no hatred
Or quest for earthly gain…
That’s what I wish. © 1988
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