Thursday, February 3, 2011

"Q" is for Quince.

 Here we go, Alpha-Thursday again. Today it is "Q"....
Come on over to Jenny's and read more...............

Alphabe-Thursday's Letter Q



The house we used to live in had a quince tree growing just outside the backyard fence. Every spring it would bloom, and grow big yellow fruit.
I didn't know anything about quinces.

One day, some of the 'city crew' were out cleaning ditches and such, and i noticed two men out by the quince tree. One of them was giving the tree the once over, he turned to the other, said something to him. The other man smiled and said something back, gesturing towards the quince tree. Then the first man reached up, picked a fruit, rubbed it against his pants and proceeded to take a big bite.

Next thing i knew, he was bent over, spitting and cursing up a storm. The other man was just standing there laughing like a loon.

That kind of gave me the idea that quinces were not good to eat. So, i forgot about the quinces tree.
Until one morning a knock came at the door. The man who knocked wanted to know if he could pick some of the quinces for his wife to prepare. I told him to go ahead and pick them all they weren't good for anything.

He did pick them all. Over the next week he came back again and again, until he had picked every fruit the tree had to offer.

A couple of days later there was a knock at the door. There stood that same man. He handed me a pitcher of some red liquid, it was still hot from the stove. He also handed me two jars of jelly. Said thank you for letting him pick the quinces and left.

Lesson learned. Not all is always as it seems. When i saw that man spitting and cursing i took it for granted that a quince was just worthless and didn't think of them again. But, let me tell you, since then, i have tasted some of the finest jelly's , punches, and pies imaginable. And i didn't have to cook a thing.

Every year that man came back. Sometimes he brought his wife and kids. They kept that quince tree busy.
That went on for about 9 years i guess. Until the city decided it was getting in the way of power lines and cut it down.

No more quince goodies for us. And i sure miss them.

15 comments:

  1. How wonderful for you that the man's wife sent you back her homemade treats! We used to have a little flowering quince in our front yard -- it was so beautiful in the spring.
    ~Amanda

    ReplyDelete
  2. I love jellies made with tart fruits, crab apple is my very favorite...I've never had quince, but maybe I need to try it!

    ReplyDelete
  3. What a great story! It's so true... not all is as always as it seems. Thank you for stopping by!

    ReplyDelete
  4. What a great story! I've never tried quince, although I see them in the grocery store every now and then.

    ReplyDelete
  5. We had quince bushes when we lived in Atlanta. They never grew into trees, though. I guess I missed something!!

    ReplyDelete
  6. What a great lesson. Thank you for sharing. I have only had quince jelly. What makes them not so good by themselves?

    Happy AlphabeThursday!

    ReplyDelete
  7. I've not had Quince anything either. They look like Pears. Your story reminds me of the way folks think of Prickley Pear Cactus Tunas. They make an awesome Jelly! Great post...thanks for stopping by CITexas Gal.

    ReplyDelete
  8. Thanks for visiting my site ... no pie, just quail ... but I've put quince in pies! Enjoyed your story ... thanks for sharing!

    ReplyDelete
  9. Well, I have never had quince anything either. I love all kinds of jellies though. Wish I could try it.

    ReplyDelete
  10. Last fall we bought a quince to plant in our fledgling orchard, and I look forward to jellies in the future - such an odd fruit though!

    ReplyDelete
  11. My favorite is mayhaw jelly. It's made from mayhaw berries that apparently only grow wild in the south. It's hard to come by, has a delicate flavor and is a lovely pink color. Nice story about the quince tree!

    ReplyDelete
  12. a wonderful story. sorry the tree had to go, i wasn't aware of this fruit. rose

    ReplyDelete
  13. Kind of analogy of life here.

    Or else I'm just being too deep today!

    I've read that quinces have to freeze before they are edible.

    It sounds like this family really appreciated them!

    Thanks for Quite a lovely link on our little journey through Alphabe-Thursday's letter "Q".

    A+

    ReplyDelete
  14. I started on COPD Herbal treatment from Ultimate Life Clinic, the treatment worked incredibly for my lungs condition. I used the herbal treatment for almost 4 months, it reversed my COPD. My severe shortness of breath, dry cough, chest tightness gradually disappeared. Reach Ultimate Life Clinic via their website at www.ultimatelifeclinic.com . I can breath much better and It feels comfortable!

    ReplyDelete