I also love them for sentimental reasons. They make me think of my Grandma Satterthwaite. When we would visit her home, we would have a big meal at lunch time (dinner) and then a simple meal in the evening (supper). Often this simple meal would include a dish of raspberries Grandma had canned. When I was in Jr. High, I spent a week at Grandma's so I could earn a little money picking berries at Hildt's berry farm. Grandma would wake me early (5:30) and she would have homemade toast (so good!) with butter and cocoa ready for me. She would give me a can to pick berries into, along with a strap she had made from pantyhose so that it would be soft around my waist. She had attached a clip to the strap so I could clip it to my bucket handle and then unclip it to pour my berries into the flat. She told me I needed to "pick clean", which meant I shouldn't leave any berries on the bush, and "pick fast", because we earned money depending on how many flats we filled. She also warned me to avoid the temptation to eat the berries, because they were "like gold".
Then she would send me out into the still dark morning, where my ride was waiting to take me to the farm. On some days she would go with me, but for the most part it was quiet work for me because I didn't know the other pickers well and I would just stay to my row, thinking "pick fast, pick clean, don't eat the berries". Of course I snitched a few, because I wasn't strong enough to eat none, but her admonitions helped me to do my best. She told me some people would fill the bottoms of their flats with dirt so they could make money faster. That made us both sad. I'm sure it wasn't very common.
One distinct memory I have is picking across from a girl (we were both picking from the same bush, she was on the other side, and I could see her through the leaves). My stomach growled SO LOUD it sounded like a bear! I was so embarrassed. I wondered if she thought I growled at her. Of course I didn't know her, and so I didn't say anything. Fortunately she was moving one way and I was moving another, so we weren't across from each other long. I don't think I picked that particular part very clean, but I did fast!
So, a few weeks ago a friend from church offered our family the chance to come and pick in her very beautiful berry patch. I have been so busy that I kept thinking I'd do it later. Our business, the children's activities, my church work, etc. have all been pretty encompassing for me. Last week I had the thought, "you should go and pick berries today, just for a little while". I pushed that thought away with what seemed to be very pressing projects and goals, and I couldn't see bringing the children out there-- it just didn't seem feasible.
Today I finally took the children out. I was so excited and brought three buckets with me. When I got to the patch I looked at the bushes and almost cried because I could tell there had been a LOT of beautiful berries on them. They were shriveled and dark purple. THOUSANDS of berries that had been beautiful and were now past their prime. We picked about 1 1/2 cups of berries today, but if we had come last week before the cold snaps hit the area, we would have filled the buckets without a problem. BOO HOO I really did shed a tear or two over this experience.
So the spiritual analogy? Don't put off a prompting. There is a time when things are ripe, and it doesn't last long.
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