Summertime...

To me, summertime is the first vine ripened tomato picked right off the vine and eaten right there. You can just taste the sunshine when you bite into it. The sweet juice exploding when your teeth first break the sun drenched skin of the tomato.

My first memory of that exact experience was when I was about 4 years old. I lived in Napa, California at the time, and some "new people" were moving in across the street from us. I was a very curious little girl who played out many adventures during the day. I decided this one long, hot, summer day that I would go and explore just who was moving in across the street, as I had a few questions for them.

I retrieved my Big Wheel; my freshly picked (out of a neighbor's yard) vine ripened tomato, and grabbed the salt shaker. I sat on my Big Wheel assessing the situation in the middle of the street when I first bit into that wonderful fresh tomato. OK, I was ready. I continued on across the street at a very slow pace as I wanted to finish this summertime tomato of mine before I met these "new people".

I reached the other side of the street and finished my tomato, got off of my big wheel, then started walking up the driveway. There was a big burly man unloading some boxes from his huge beast of a truck. I wasn't scared a bit! I asked him my big question, "Do you have any kids I can play with"? He stopped what he was doing, turned and looked down at me and started laughing! You see, I had gotten most of that wonderful tomato all over my face and dress! He then told me I should go inside the house and ask his wife. So I did.

I wondered into the house and looked all over and then I found her. She was in her bedroom hanging things on the walls and I asked her the same most important question, "Do you have any kids I can play with"? Well she almost fell off of her ladder as I startled her! She looked down at me and she too started laughing! She answered my important question and said "yes, they will be here tomorrow, we are just finishing up here and will be back tomorrow with the whole family".

We became very close friends with these "new people" and still keep in touch today. So every time when our vine ripened tomatoes are ready to be picked I always take the first one from the vine, grab my salt shaker, sit back and remember that long ago summertime day.