5.05.2012

OH FIGS!




Thar's times in life when ya' jes' git overwhelmed an' let important stuff git away from ya'. Ever had that happen in yore life?  


We's had a busy spring, an I prolly over did some--an' got thrown to the ground wif' bronchitis which took 2 Z-packs to knock it back.    I ain't makin' excuses, jes 'splainin' how it be that let stuff go undone... an now? I'se so inundated by the nitty gritty of life that I is missin' some really important thangs.  

 Like figs.


Y'all know that Aunty be addicted to metaphor. I see ever'day thangs as a parallel to the inner life--the reflective soul-- that part of us that ponders the meanin' of thangs.  So this mornin' I'se putterin' in the Dawg Pen Garden  (dawgs is daid under the camellias, the fenced run now is home to a container garden of herbs, tomatoes, beans, cucumbers an' squash),  an' then decided to stroll down the jasmine hedge toward a bench to sit an' listen to bird song. 

 


 A weak branch stuck out along the hedge at hip height--the fig tree done sent a shoot out to hunt fer sun.  

 The fig tree?  Oh! Look at them gorgeous leaves. No wonder Adam an' Eve hid their nekkid selves wif' these pretty leaves (Eve sewed sequins on hers) . I'd forgotten to check to see if it were settin' fruit.

I stopped an' pulled back the overgrowth of Plumbago an' Jasmine towering 10 feet over the top of the 6' fence. We allow this  growth as it affords us'uns an' our neighbors a green wall of privacy. Thar' in the jungle of Lakeview Jasmine the fig tree had secretly rocketed skyward during our mild winter an' early spring.   Oh!  FIGS!!



Mercy, y'all, jes' look at them figs!  Granny give me this fig tree fer my birthday the year afore she "got her wings."   The tree  struggled. I should have moved it, but she had chosen the spot--Granny wanted to be sure I could see it from the kitchen window.  She said. "Figs need love, they like to live whar' folks see 'em, an' talk to 'em. My own Granny said thas' why ya plant a fig near the house, not out in the south forty."

Despite its struggle, despite being ignored, despite being overshadowed by an aggressive high hedge, the fig tree is PRODUCTIVE!  


An' I reckon thas' the way it is fer most of us--our lives are productive of "good fruit" despite our struggles, despite our roadblocks. Some days that is hard to see because the "jungle" of our daily lives obscures all that we have managed to accomplish.  I need to clear out the thangs that prevent the good fruit from thriving, getting plump an' delicious.  I need to cut some stuff out of my life--to let the good fruit soak in the sunny goodness that is thar' when I clear away the superfluous.


 
An guess who else has been productive, but overshadowed by  huge pot of zinnias?   The Calla Lily!  Sometimes we look but jes' doan see what all is thar fer us ---ain't that true? 

***

Did yore wise ole family folk have a funny sayin'? Like Granny's dictum: "Fig trees need love, plant it whar' it can hear folks talkin'."   

****
Biblical figs @  http://ethercapacious.blogspot.com/

19 comments:

moi said...

I can't think of any funny or wise sayings my family has, but we are very creative cussers. Of course, I'll spare you in that regard.

Figs? You have FIGS? I'm getting on a plane right now. Nothing better than a freshly ripe fig straight off the tree. My inlaws have one that produces like crazy. They tried to send them to me fresh one year. It was a disaster. They melted, but our birds had a big treat. Now, they just jar them in their own syrup. Very yummy on pancakes.

As for your metaphorical meaning, yes. I need to do some pruning myself. I'm feeling way too tangled.

Doom said...

So very true. I keep trying to do what I probably never will be able to do again that I forget the little things I do do. And, with others, I regretfully do the same. While it is good to try and pull the world, at times, knowing that you lift the spirits, entertain, or simply help fulfill another... is probably the best thing, and easiest to overlook, of all the things we do? Perhaps it is all we really can do, in truth? The rest is just... could be done by another, or even a machine or computer in time.

Thanks for finding the figs.

Anonymous said...

Hah, Both my Grannies said they had to be where they could hear fightin and yellin, else they weren't going to grow. My Dad gave me one last year and asked me if I put it close to the house. I put it close enough, but no one but me hear and occassionly fussin @ the cat, tellin her not to beat the other one up.

fishy said...

It's a joy to go for a walk in your own back yard and find delightful surprises. I do wonder how the folklore started about planting the figs close to the love.... must be some connection to Adam and Eve in a "be fruitful" kind of way. No doubt this is especially dear because it was the wisdom and generosity of Granny Cracker that set you up for this annual delight.
Clearly what was planted is love for all to see just out the Kitchen window.

No calla lilly here but very soon
there will be Peonies! Glad to read you are over the miseries. Some of these new super bugs is hard to fight off.

R.Powers said...

Thanks to Granny, I now understand why the baby fig tree I planted way over by the garbage can corral just lingers.

Poor thing is lonely.

There's an easy roast chicken at PF today that Uncle might like. Easy to make too.

I'm so glad your Granny fig is thriving.

darkfoam said...

I never knew that about fig trees. I do know that the figs at my relatives' places in Mississippi grow right beside the houses.

Let's see ... Sayings. ... A German great aunt of mine always insisted that one should not drink milk with liver wurst or else one would die.

Pam said...

I have never tried to grow a fig and I don't even know if they grow in this part of the country (except for those indoor fig trees which don't produce fruit). We heard from a gardener this about trees: The first year, they sleep. The second year, they creep. The third year, they leap. And I'm glad to know this because we have been more patient with a few things we have planted.

Love this post Auntie Belle! Cheers to you this fine Sunday Evening.

Sandcastle Momma said...

When my great, great, great grandfather came to America from Croatia he brought a fig sapling and planted in his yard in Pensacola. A lot of the ancestors between him and me took cuttings from that fig and planted it in their own yards. My Dad gave me a cutting off of his about 10 years ago and it's huge and thriving next to my patio. It's nice to look out at that fig and know that it's DNA - and mine - started in Croatia back in the late 1800s.
Now if I could just keep the darn squirrels away I could enjoy the figs!

SophieMae said...

Somehow I knew this was just the right time to pop in. This is exactly what I needed to hear - read - right now.

Your morning glories are simply... glorious! Mimosas are blooming all around us, but the deer keep gnawing ours to the nub. A scrawny pawpaw we had given up for dead is surprising us with blossoms. The fruit isn't much taste-wise, but I'm a tad partial to anything with a name like 'pawpaw'. It does a body - and soul - good, at any rate, to see a puny thing fighting to live and growing stronger for it.

Aunty Belle said...

Moi,
Come on down! I run the flag up the pole when they's ripe an'...I'se no nun ( coulda, shoulda??) but the beds is bed-bug free) (See Boxer)
Yore Louisiana folks have figs? But, 'course they do!

Doom,
Hey you! Exactly, mah friend--lighten the day, share the load, offer a smile--in the end, this is treasured more than much else we spin ourselves over.

Anonymous??
Who's ya'? I LOVE that yore grannies said the same about the fig tree--thas' amazizn'! An' yore daddy give ya one? how's it doin'? Whar' does ya live--which zone (garden zone)?

Fishy,
One of the delicious moment in life--strollin' the back forty when thangs is in bloom--Granny accused me of "dew dancin'" cause I tip toes out early in mah batiste gowned glory like a wood nymph--only these days the wood nymph is a hobbling hag.

Peonies???? Be still mah heart!!

Aunty Belle said...

FC,
well, now, iffin' yta replant that fig tree near the lovin' in yore house, let us know do it thrive?__a science man, youse gonna have a scientific explanation fer us, I'll bet. I came over to see that chicken--it do look plum fittin'!

Foamy,
no way Yore Mississippi folks have fig trees next to the house? I luv that! Ask him why? Does they know how that rule got its start?

Iffin' I'se go to puttin' liverwurst in mah mouth I die anyhoo--doan even need the milk.

PamOKC,
hmmn...now I doan know either--I mean, CAN ya grow figs? does y'all like 'em? I think that is a fine sayin'--this is third year for a tangerine saplin' an it is LEAPING.

Sand Castle Momma,

so happy to see ya! Yore Fig Tree tradition is beautiful! I'se so touched by it--an inherited tree from Croatia_-thas' very dear. I wanna see Croatia--did make it to the Czech Republic, but someday I'se gonna go see yore Fig's homeland. An' that tree lives close to the house, at the patio? See? These ole tales have merit, doan they?

Please come by again.

Aunty Belle said...

SOPHIE MAE????

I'se about to send out the sheriff to hunt ya' down, Sweet Pea. Paw paw tree? Thas' so...so...Cracker! We's kin, I jes' know it!

Keep truckin' Puddin', thangs will come out eventually.

fishy said...

I sure hope Pam is right about the third year leap because I thought the dogwoods and ornamental cherries we planted in '09 were just not thriving because of the drought status. We'll see .....

I agree with Sophie Mae your mornings are glorious!

Buzz Kill said...

So, other than the fig leaves that you and uncle can wear around the house, what are your plans for the figs? A nice jam, a tart, maybe a lamb dish?

It must be nice to live where you can have fruit trees. Thanks for sharing.

chickory said...

I loved this! what in the word have i neglected to appreciate because it didnt jump out at me? what a sweet gift of discovery those figs are. its no wonder everybody understands the need for pruning: its like the whole world is an episode of hoarders.

Great post.

chickory said...

btw they told me I cant have figs up in north georgia. they die back to the ground in the freeze.

Aunty Belle said...

Fishy,
I 'spect them cherries will surprise ya next year!

BuzzK,

Uncle in a fig leaf: Bwhahahahaha!!
I will serve them fresh wif cream cheese an' honey fer dessert, I reckon. If thar's extra, will have a Fig Jam. Good to see ya on the Porch!!

Chick9,
Stuff has to jump out at me an' grab me by the throat, sayin', "looky heah ya ole blind goose--THIS is what matters"

I think youse purty good at lookin' hard at stuff--its the prunnin' part thas' rough.

NO figs in nawth georgia? Will they survive in Hotlanta?

darkfoam said...

I thought about this for a while and I did recall my aunt asking me a few years ago if I knew why her fig trees were close to the house. She did say that the needed to be close to humans and love. This aunt recently had a stroke. Thanks for bringing this memory back with your story.

Aunty Belle said...

Ah Foamy...sorry about yore Aunt. She knew the fig secret--must be a good lady.