Life's Lessons Learned Picking Wild Berries
Recently, I picked approximately five gallons of dewberries, which average about 1/3 the size of blackberries and grow on bushes closer to the ground. The dewberries grow wild on property managed by the Army Corps of Engineers that surrounds the neighborhood in which I currently reside. While I was picking these berries, I was reminded of picking blackberries with an aunt in 1951.
At age 10, I convinced my parents to let me live with my favorite aunt, an uncle and my paternal grandfather. My parents had five sons, so it was reasonable that they could spare one to help care for my “invalid” grandfather; there were no children in my aunt and uncle’s home.
My aunt was a good teacher, although she only had six years of formal education. She took me along with her when she went to pick wild blackberries. It was easy to convince me to help pick the berries; I knew she would bake a berry cobbler and whip some cream to place on top of the portion I would eat. When we were in the berry patch, she would draw analogies between things we would encounter there and things I would encounter later in life.
A good example of a lesson learned in the berry patch is: Many things in life have risks associated with them. When picking berries, a person faces the risks of briar scratches, mosquito and tick bites that could lead to infections (Rocky Mountain spotted fever, Lyme disease, West Nile virus [In 1951, we were not yet aware of Lyme disease and West Nile virus]), snake bites, etc. My aunt would warn of risks in life from unwise use of alcohol, speeding when operating a motor vehicle, unwise use of a tool, including guns, axes, knives and chainsaws, and unwise affection for a disloyal person.
Another lesson learned in the berry patch was: A “gathering” approach to selection of berries to pick is better than the “hunt and shoot” approach. If a person focuses too intently on the biggest juicy ripe berries, she or he is apt to overlook many other ripe berries nearby. She would demonstrate that she could pick far more berries than I could in the same period of time. She was seeing far more berries nearby, while I was moving about trying to pick only the biggest and nicest berries I would see. My aunt said that men and boys seemed to prefer the “hunt and shoot” approach to the “gathering” approach generally preferred by women and girls. She made this observation in 1951, well before this concept was popularized through a comedy skit and published literature.
A third lesson learned in the berry patch was: When one reaches too far, she or he is apt to lose her or his balance and increase exposure to the risks of unintended injuries and fail to achieve the successful outcome desired. If one loses her or his balance, she or he is apt to fall, brush against one or more briars, or expose oneself to a snakebite. Copperhead snakes tend to inhabit brushy areas where blackberries thrive. My aunt saw this as analogous to living beyond one’s means, which could lead to financial ruin, or trying to attract the affections of a person who would be disinterested or highly likely to be disloyal to the relationship.
I have been grateful to my aunt throughout my life for lessons she taught me in the berry patch, the stable and the garden.