Life, and apples

If I were to write a short story right now, it would be called "The 500 Apples, in Twelve Uses," and subtitled, "A tale of living." Let's see if I can give you an idea:

Use #1: Food for tweety

It all started one afternoon as I was contentedly teaching an online class while gazing out the window at the September wind dancing through the branches of my aunt's apple tree. As I discussed grammar with my students, my busy eyes doted on the sight of the waltz - or maybe the tango - being danced between the breeze and the tree. All of a sudden I saw a little bird who in spite of the dance was stubbornly hanging on to the branch of a tree, eating his fill of an apple. In spite of my annoyance that he was touching our future crop, I admired the pluck and determination of little tweety, and determined to hang on until the apples ripened - and my somewhat confusing life ironed itself out.



Use #2: Windfall Apples

When I first went back to Southern Utah, I'd thought I'd only be staying for a couple of days. I'd had the craziest month of my life trying to get back - my car broke down, was towed, I was told there was nothing wrong with it, then it REALLY broke down; my computer quit (a big deal in my profession); my car got stuck Idaho when I drove my sister's back to make it to rehearsal; I had other things to be doing; there were tremendous changes in my life that broke my heart and required my full attention etc. etc. Finally, I just grabbed my stuff and left. After about an hour of sitting on a friend's couch in Southern Utah, I knew why I was there, and knew that the next few weeks would change my life forever. Like the apple who suddenly find's itself flying towards the ground when it fully intended spend it's days solidly on the tree, this was not what I expected, but totally worth it.

Use #3: Windfall Apple Crisp

I came back up for rehearsal after staying a full week, days beyond my plans. My brother and I picked up the best windfall apples from under the tree and made a crisp - kind of like an apple pie without the crust. I didn't have a recipe, but that never stopped me, and the results, to the suprise of the skeptical, were splendid. I knew I'd stepped into a new phase of life, one without the fear that permeated the past. Like many would be who found the apples we ate for desert had been picked up off the ground, those around me were a little skeptical. I told them to know them by their fruits.

Use #4: Apple Crisp, again

Somehow, in cooking, I have a hard time doing the same thing twice. That second week in Southern Utah was unique in many ways. My relationships down there shifted exponentially. While some things were cut back to the basics, others grew. I found out what it is like to have someone I really look up to go through a hard time, and still be okay with it. Fred (okay, I've never really met a man by that name outside of the movies, but I haven't asked if I could broadcast his life story to the worldwide internet audience. Although I'm sure he'd be okay with it, "Fred" is my favorite cover-all pseudonym) helped me get back to my roots as I learned again how to ride a bike, this time in tandem. We ascended hills and wobbled down city streets, much to my alternating fear and delight. At canyon park, we practiced jumping off the swings, and I thought of how very far and long it had been - both spiritually and emotionally and in time - since I'd been in that place doing that precise thing. We rode up the canyon and got soaked in freezing October rain on the way back down, much to my perfect delight. Miracles do happen. I'd seen them both in my life and in those God leads to me. This time, we made windfall apple crisp again, only I added walnuts and orange. It was even better.

Use #5: Apples for the Road

Millions of young people in the United States, millions more in Canada. Three hundred youth and maybe fourty councilors. One of me. Somehow the numbers do not seem to match up.
These were my thoughts as I walked into L.'s house in Cedar on Monday for my third consecutive week. I found Lloyd sitting at the table. (No, that is not his real name, and no, it was not his house, but it is the nickname we decided on for him that day, so I think it counts). I asked him what he was doing there. In the typical fashion of almost all my good friends, he said "Oh, I just had a feeling I should come here, so I did." Talk about SayGoBeDo! I tried hard not to distract him from his science homework, but finally my trying outweighed his textbook. We began talking. I told him about wanting to reach more youth. I've seen too many miracles in my small store of experience directing and speaking at youth conferences to not want to connect with more. I wanted to find an already existing nation-wide youth organization and begin building bridges. He immediately began telling me about a mentoring program where he had previously been involved. "In fact, why don't we go talk to them right now?" "Now?" "Why not?" "But, um... well, why not?!" We left immediately and met with the leaders of the individual groups at the high schools in town, and got names and numbers of those higher up in the organization to make things really begin to roll. I love the people in my life, and those apples gave me food for thought on the drive.

Use #6: Apple Butternut Soup...?

It was almost as hard to pack up and come back this weekend as it was to go down in the first place. Rehearsal and performing is picking up here, limiting my ability to live in two places at once, and although I know I'll see everyone again soon, I still miss it. I got back in time to put the finishing touches on my aunt's suprise birthday party on Saturday. It has been difficult for her to get out much, and I'll never forget the look on her face when she saw her friends hiding behind their menus at one of her favorite restraunts. Perhaps, yes, it is worth it to be back. Afterwards, we celebrated with mini cakes and popcorn and trick-or-treaters at her house. Today, for the first time in my life, I made a Butternut cream soup, and yes, I actually did follow a recipe. I thought about adding apples to it, since they were actually harvested this week and we have apples filling the refrigerator and the storage room and the kitchen counter, but I didn't. I wanted to try conforming for a change.

Use #7-12: To be continued...
There are still probably four hundred of those 500 Apples left, and I am only half way through their possible uses. Let me know if you have ideas. I would love to enjoy apples, and life, with you one of these times.