I am in the throes of ecstasy. Relax, this is a family blog. The pleasure to which I’m referring is produce-related. I just made it worse, didn’t I? Let’s get back on track. Fresh corn on the cob, watermelon, cantaloupe, tomatoes and now peaches. Oh, the peaches. I will admit that a round, fuzzy fruit is usually eaten before we have barely left the farm stand. Knowing it was just picked that morning is too enticing to resist.
But here’s what I don’t understand: how can you cut an entire cantaloupe into pieces and begin to eat them only to find that some of the chunks are full of delicious flavor while some have no taste at all? It’s all the same ‘lope so how can this be? In thinking about this post, I Googled this question: Are fruits and vegetables living things? Unless you have a good amount of time to spend on this subject I would not recommend you do the same. Who knew this was such a great debate and who knew I actually do research during the writing of this blog?
If indeed the melon in question, interchangeable with any produce you choose, is alive, or was before it was picked or pruned or harvested or cut down in the prime of its life in a Tim Burton/Halloweeny/macabre sort of way, then I guess like humans, not all parts are good and not all parts are bad. A frail, feeble hypotheses but it’s all I’ve got. This and a half scrumptious orange-fleshed melon.
I have referenced Seinfeld’s proclamation for years: Fruit’s A Gamble. But there is nothing I’d rather put my money or my mouth on. Oh, I will perform my due diligence, sniffing, squeezing, rubbing, holding up and shaking (I am pretty sure my grandmother taught me this to give herself a good laugh – how I miss that woman!), pulling back husks to expose the kernels, but the only sure way to know if you’ve hit the jackpot is to take a bite. It’s a metaphor for life (ours, not the produce since that’s yet to be decided) and it’s also simply sweet, delictable, juicy, addictive pleasure.