The cherry tree on the side of the house was full and I was sure that they would rot on the tree if I had no help. The little boys in the neighborhood eyed the tree with longing and one of them asked if he would be able to have some of them this year. "Yes," I said and he smiled happily. Finally the day came when the cherries were just right. I asked if they were ready to help with the harvest. "Jumatate, jumatate," I said. (Half and half.) Soon there were half a dozen boys clambering about the tree; two of whom climbed up as far as they could past the top of the ladder. Others put the fallen cherries into liter-sized plastic yogurt buckets from which developed a huge plastic tub full of delicious, but rather small, sweet cherries. Finally, we divided them, each of the boys taking home plastic bag with at least two liters of cherries in each, more than half of the pick of the day. They were very happy with the cherries but even more delighted with getting a turn on the swing Eugeniu has put on a branch of the walnut tree. I can still see the smiles of delight as they flew back and forth in the cool of the evening.
Now it is almost time for the next venture, the visine (sour cherries). We have so many trees full of visine that we could supply a market for a long while. Oana, Eugeniu's daughter, and her daughters, Alexandra and Adela, are coming on Monday when Eugeniu says that they will be ready. Alexandra was first in her class and was duly recognized on the last day of school last Friday when honors were presented.
Last week I picked strawberries morning and night while pulling and cutting weeds and other things that did not belong in the strawberry bed. Nicu promises to make proper rows of strawberries for the next crop so that we can harvest them more easily. This variety does not have a long shelf life, but it does have a flavor that is so light and delicate that I think that this is really how strawberries are supposed to taste. They are safely frozen for future enjoyment.
In the meanwhile, Nicu tamed the vines so that the grapes can grow and ripen as they should. Weeds gone and branches attached to the wires, the grapes are now the size of small peas. Last year I made the most delicious grape juice and this year I hope to put way more. That is, if most of the grapes do not get appropriated to more traditional methods of preservation like wine and moost (?).
We have not heard from Nicu today. Our prayers are with him. Without his help much of the work here could not have been done. That includes work on this house, building the carport, finishing his house and taking care of the garden. We moved the refrigerator from Bucharest for him to use and before he could finish the interior walls of his house, it burned. Completely. It was ruined. The walls and ceiling were black with soot. The neighbors told him that they saw the smoke coming out of the vent in the roof on a Sunday while we were away. The damage would have been worse if there had been more air. We were fortunate that he was not there and that this did not happen while the refrigerator was in the house in Bucharest. If that had happened there the air was plentiful and the circulation so good that the whole house would have burned to the ground. As it was, the plastic sides of the refrigerator melted, nothing was salvageable, not even the trays. After the refrigerator burned, Nicu continued to make his small efficiency into a habitable place for him to stay while he is working here. Complete with stove, new refrigerator, table, bed and TV, his small house has become comfortable.
Now Nicu has been told that he has diabetes and they are checking his heart. He has a diet to follow for the diabetes, but the results for the tests on his heart are not yet ready. Before he went into Bucharest for these most recent "controls" he cleared the weeds from the bed where we have planted blueberries, afine, and he also cleared out the most of the weeds between the rows of grapevines. A lot of work. He also replanted some tomato plants and guili, which are root plants. Amalia, his wife, has decided that she, too, will come here when she is not working at her job in Bucharest. It is much cooler here than in the city and one can enjoy the pleasant breezes that make one feel that there is a natural air conditioning when sitting in the shade.
It is living here watching the seasons that I understand more clearly the succession of harvest times for the various fruits and vegetables that grow here. That there is a "season for all things" takes on a much fuller meaning than ever before. After the visine come the pears and then the apples and tomatoes. In the fields the grains has tuned to gold and the corn is knee high.
This year the rain came too little and too late so much of the wheat and most of the corn has been lost. Irrigation was impossible for the most part as allotments for paying for the water came too late and most of the irrigation equipment was stolen long ago for the metal which was sold for a fraction of the value of what was destroyed.
