Summer Fruit

Some days it's just too danged hot to fish. If you don't get to the water by daybreak, you have to wait until 8:30 or 9:00 p.m. for sunset. In between is pure murder. For the last few days the temperature where I live has walked both sides of the 100-degree mark. Along with an almost saturated atmosphere, the days can be brutal.

That's when I turn to another of my favorite things. I like to go to the farmer's market and load myself down with fresh-off-the-farm fruits and vegetables. Today I went and found ears of sweet corn, shelled butter beans and peas, okra, cucumbers, tomatoes and much more. On the same table were blackberries the size of my thumbnail, nectarines, watermelons, cantaloupe and peaches. Yes, I said peaches.

Peaches hold a special place in my life, as they are the oldest known smell to me. As a consequence, I like to hold a slightly firm, but fuzzy peach up to my face so I can drink in its nectar-filled essence in my nose. It sometimes is so heady, I get dizzy. I hold it such that I can put my mouth on the cleft at its top and begin to lightly nibble the fuzz until the first of the juice runs into my mouth. Now, some people like to peel their peaches, but I have no preference. Eating the skin is just as good as eating one that's peeled.

After a while I reach a point when all caution and deliberateness are thrown to the wind, and I just dive in. This ensures not only that I get the maximum pleasure from its taste in the shortest amount of time, but I manage to always have its juices drip down off my chin and onto my clothes. Although I don't care, these drips sometimes make for embarrassing moments when I get around others later on. But I rarely notice, as the moment with the peach in my mouth, with its exquisite feel and taste, overcomes all else.

And then, after I've eaten my fill, all that's left is the pit. Now back when I sailed merchant ships I learned how to carve pits from an old salt. It provided me countless hours of entertainment while I practiced my skills as a carver. Although I don't remember their sequence now, there are only 10 cuts to make (in order) that result in a monkey holding its tail between its legs. I do so wish I remembered that one!

But after I'm sated, my favorite dish to make with the surviving peaches is cobbler. I know, it's not the least bit good for me, but it tastes so good.

And it reminds me of how much fun I have eating a peach.