AT HOME WITH KAYLA PRICE 5/6: Tales from the farm

ByTaylor Nye

PublishedMay 6, 2022

Tales From the Farm: Picking Up

Growing up, we did a lot of picking up as in picking up pecans, pomegranates, pears, etc. Usually that meant, after all the picking up, my sister and I would sell what we gathered for a few cents at a stand either in front of our parents’ house or in front of our aunt’s house in Mesquite.Often our chore of picking up edibles was made more enjoyable by first starting with a picnic. My mom, dad, sister, and I would all load into the cab of my dad’s truck. My mom would have packed something light to eat, such as sandwiches, and a large glass jar of water (individual plastic bottles of water weren’t a thing back then).Down several bumpy roads we would finally make it to the pasture that held our bounty. The pecan trees were clumped together in a pasture that was lovely with gentle hills. In my mind’s eye, it was always lush and green. However, the pomegranate tree was all by itself as we would enter a pasture north of town. It seemed as strange to me then as it does now that a single pomegranate tree was standing in a pasture. This pasture didn’t have many trees. Other than the pomegranate tree, the rest grew along the fence row. The pear tree was behind our house, so the pears were easier to gather.Back when I was in elementary school, no one really knew much about pomegranates. We sold them for a nickel apiece but had to show folks how to open them and eat them. Needless to say, we did not fund our college educations with the proceeds of our pomegranate sales! I really wish I still had access to those pomegranates now!We would also sell the pears, which was much easier to do. I don’t recall how much we sold those for, but it was probably about the same price.I do not remember ever selling pecans. They were greatly regarded by the cooks in our family and could be frozen for later use. My mom might give a bag away from time to time once she had picked them out. It seemed like she was always picking out pecans, and the tips of her fingers showed proof of her activity!

[adning id=”33207″]A few years ago, I had a large harvest of pecans at my house. I spent many hours picking out pecans using my mom’s bowl and utensils. It was a daunting task but gave me lots of time to reflect on my childhood and the time spent with our parents doing such basic things as picking up pecans.Ten years ago, I was amused when my husband brought home a large bounty of persimmons he had gathered from a tree in the pasture. I did not know the tree was there. It was located where a home used to stand decades ago. We were so proud of our persimmons! I made them into persimmon jelly which tasted delicious. The only problem was that too much of the pulp had passed through the sieve, and it wasn’t as delicate of a texture as one expects from their jelly.In today’s world, very few parents or children would have time for picking up nuts and fruit from a pasture. Back then we didn’t complain because we didn’t know any differently. There weren’t all the travelling sports teams, cheer squads, and activities kids are in these days. Piano lessons and an occasional summer camp were about the extent of things to do at night, on the weekend and during the summer. Our activities usually involved spending time together as a family, doing chores, and being outside. And they gave me memories I will always cherish!