One of the best times of year here in Northern Manitoba is late summer, when the leaves begin to turn the vibrant colors of fall and the air becomes more crisp, sighing away the last few warm days before the first snowfall. During this part of summer, one can trample through the boreal forest and collect blueberries to their heart’s content. It is absolutely magical to sit in the middle of a blueberry patch and collect the small, blue buggers for hours and hours. Your hands turn blue and your fingers grow numb from picking, but you know that once you get home it will all be worth it. You will have blueberries for months… or maybe weeks (They do not last very long in our house at all).
There is really nothing better, though, then to go blueberry picking with friends. This summer a few of us ladies decided to go picking and hopped from patch to patch for about three hours. Though our hands and backs were tired, the time seemed to pass so quickly as we chatted about everything under the sun. We could not stop grinning as we told one another story after story, filling our buckets with berries and our hearts with joy.
At one point on another blueberry escapade one of the ladies I was with suddenly exclaimed, “I am pregnant!” It was completely random and had nothing to do with anything we were talking about, but there was so much love and joy shared in that moment as we all ran over to give hugs and congratulations. We went back to picking blueberries eventually, but that certainly did not stop us from talking about and giggling with amazement at the little life growing inside my dear friend.
Maybe not everyone has these memorable moments of bliss when picking blueberries. To some it may be something just to do. But I have found that the act of sharing with others the joy found in those clusters of small, blue yummies certainly makes for an abundance of priceless memories and delightful, delicious delicacies
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This Darling Adventure 