Grapes
My wife enjoys raising plants. In fact, if you are on our deck in the summer, it looks like a jungle with all the plants.
Usually, that means I help her bring them in during the late fall and take them back out in spring. But, this devotion is not about her ornamental plants.
Several years ago, she wanted to grow some fruit and vegetables. Her early attempts were less than successful until she planted a gooseberry bush. One of my favorite pies is gooseberry, and she wanted to grow gooseberries for pies and cobblers. If you have never picked gooseberries, they are a pain to prepare for cooking. Like green beans, they have a small stem that needs to be removed by hand from each berry.
A couple of years ago, she planted a blackberry bush and a grape bush. This year has seen a good crop of both. The blackberries ripened first and she made a couple of cobblers. Now the grapes are ripening. The grapes are the smaller grapes with seeds, which I suspect are grown for wine or juice.
This reminded me of my great-grandmother's farm. She had a big trellis of grapes in her yard with a patch of tiger lilies in front. To the best of my recollection, the grapes were never harvested for use.
When I was about 13, my mom took us to visit my grandma (who had moved into the family farmhouse by then) for a Friday coffee-and-chat session (their practice was to not do farm work on Friday afternoon for a few hours and drink coffee and chat). I made my way to the ripened grapes and started eating them as I went.
This was going fine until I ignored a buzzing sound and stepped on a nest of bees. I was stung many times. In fact, I was stung so much I could hardly see due to the swelling.
It must have been close to Labor Day because I remember not being able to see the Jerry Lewis Telethon very clearly (yes, I’m that old - if you don’t know what the Jerry Lewis Telethon was, Google it). It was a few days of discomfort and a valuable lesson learned about paying attention to loud buzzing sounds.
I’m pretty sure that was the last time I picked grapes at the family farm.
“Oh give thanks to the Lord, for he is good; for his steadfast love endures forever! Let Israel say, “His steadfast love endures forever.” Let the house of Aaron say, “His steadfast love endures forever.” Let those who fear the Lord say, “His steadfast love endures forever.” Out of my distress I called on the Lord; the Lord answered me and set me free. The Lord is on my side; I will not fear. What can man do to me? The Lord is on my side as my helper; I shall look in triumph on those who hate me. It is better to take refuge in the Lord than to trust in man. It is better to take refuge in the Lord than to trust in princes. All nations surrounded me; in the name of the Lord I cut them off! They surrounded me, surrounded me on every side; in the name of the Lord I cut them off! They surrounded me like bees; they went out like a fire among thorns; in the name of the Lord I cut them off! I was pushed hard, so that I was falling, but the Lord helped me. The Lord is my strength and my song; he has become my salvation.” - Psalm 118:1-14 ESV
There is a reason a lot of the Bible is written with imagery. I’d guess that many of us have had an unfortunate experience with a beehive. That experience sure makes the Psalm come alive.
