Cherry Pickers

Summer is always busy with the varying stages of harvest. In July we picked raspberries and then later on Evans cherries. In August we picked peas, cucumbers, tomatoes, chokecherries and apples and in September we will pick grapes. The most fun we had so far was picking cherries. We were invited out to a couple of different friends places to pick their excess. We didn't get any cherries off our own trees this year so it was a boon to have such good friends share their surplus with us this year.

So we went out to a farm to pick Evans cherries. As you may know, birds absolutely love to eat these juicy, tart berries and with the size they grow to, the birds can't stay away - so the farmer pulls out his gun and uses the birds for target practice. He proudly proclaimed as we drove up that he had killed about 7 birds in the last 12 hours. That meant that we were picking berries with a few dead birds underfoot and some of them had been there quite a while. We were game though and picked cherries for 2 hours filling nearly 3 large stainless steel bowls before we had to leave.

Charity looks at the camera...
She was getting tired by that time of picking cherries.

Beth and Melodee standing high in the trees to pick the
laden branches.

Looking through the tree at Myles reaching for a high
branch filled with cherries.

Upon on the ladder - we never could have
done it without the help of those ladders!

The kids enjoyed climbing high into the trees and met the challenge of reaching the still heavily loaded branches. Rain threatened and still we persevered with smiles on our faces. With the sun shining through the clouds we enjoyed some beautiful prairie scenery as we picked cherries. It was a wonderful day, just cool enough to enjoy.

Looking off over the neighboring fields.
The colors were incredible.

Evans cherries aren't the easiest berries to pick. They are very juicy and quite easy to squish. Our hands didn't take long to get sticky as we worked to fill our buckets. Sometimes it seemed to take forever for the cherries to accumulate. But despite the discomforts and the slow pace I was so pleased with my children as they worked together to complete the task at hand. It was a fun and memorable afternoon. Beth was the oldest one there as the older kids were all at work,  but even without the extra hands, the work was done quickly. We are so thankful for the opportunity made available to us to pick cherries this year. They make fabulous juice and it is healthy too! We will be enjoying the fruits of our labors all winter.

Sometimes life is like picking berries. When we pick berries it often seems to take forever to fill a bucket and sometimes life seems to be seemingly pointless or mundane. But as we persevere, doing good things, one day we will look back and be surprised to find that our buckets are full and the harvest is great. With it comes a lot of joy and a sense of accomplishment. It is very satisfying to see and recognize the good things in life. I love it!

 Life is good.