Blackberries

I went berrypicking with Fisherman Willie & wife. Around the perimeter were more berries, but they were small. Looking into the thick of the patch, on the hillside were the choiciest blackberries. What to do? Stay in the easy area or venture down the hillside into the thick of it? Some answers are easy: go to the best berries. The process of executing that answer . . . was a bit more involved. As I was wading thru the briars, I was thinking of a story Dave Dobson tells when he says that you have to risk going out on the skinny branches to get the best fruit. Black berry picking was my metaphor for the day.

It takes some foresight: I was dressed in jeans & a long sleeve shirt, but that was also based on my experience berrypicking as a child. Funny how some answers are easier when you've done them before. And you may expect to get a thorn here or there, but the promise of the sweetness of blackberry jam is worth it!