I was thinking the other night about some of the things my husband did like climbing trees for folks in our private campground in order to give them a better view. This one wasn’t nearly as dangerous, but it is one that i thought was one the kids, grandkids and grandkids would enjoy later. Then I thought you might like it too. So here it is:
The day Grandpa planted the plum tree was a happy one. He dug a hole and put in the fruit fertilizer and the water before he put in the, what looked to me, like a small branch! He watched it grow and grow it did! Every summer he would put in some more fertilizer and soon the small branch became a tree!
One day, he came inside all excited. “There are little plums on our tree!” He called out. I went out with him and saw what looked like some little pimples on the leaves.
“Are you sure they will become plums?” I asked.
“O yes, I’m sure,” he answered. “I will watch them everyday to see them become plums. And watch he did. Every day the little pimples grew into big green plums. and the green plums grew into big purple plums!
One night, after we had gone to bed, the wind began to blow. It blew hard too. Grandpa didn’t sleep much that night. He kept getting up and looking out the window, praying the wind would stop blowing. But it didn’t. Finally, he went to sleep and awakened to a still, sunny morning. The first thing he did was to go out to look at his plums. They were still there! they hadn’t blown off the tree at all. He smiled and thanked God for keeping the plums on the tree. Then he came indoors and said, rather smugly I thought, “I guess we’ll harvest the plums tomorrow.”
Tomorrow came in nice and bright. It felt good to be outside. It smelled like a fall morning, crisp and clear. I was glad this was the day we would harvest the plums.
Grandpa walked over to the tree, carrying his step ladder and his pail. But there were no plums on the tree! What had happened to them, we both wondered. Just then, a big, fat squirrel walked by, and i do say walked, not ran like squirrels usually do. His jaw stuck out making his face look very big , and his tummy was huge, so huge he could barely walk.
We could tell right away who had taken the plums from us. “Well, i guess his home is filled up for the winter and his tummy is filled up too. even if ours won’t have the good plum jam you make to put on our breakfast toast in the mornings,” Grandpa said as he walked to the little room with his ladder and his pail.
Grandpa died several years ago, and I still miss him. Yesterday, the plum tree died also. I will miss it too. Isn’t it strange how these little things pop up in our minds when they are gone? God gave us a real big gift when he gave us memory, don’t you think?
GramMa's Thoughts 