The Zen of Picking Blackberries

Ok, so it's not been a great summer for blackberries. Far from it. It's been shite, truth be known. The promise of the bramble-flowered back roads last June faded fast in the September rain. But in the field beside us, the bushes did, finally, yield enough 'blackahs' not just for blackberry crumbles, but for jam as well. And while filling my bucket with juicy ripeness, I discovered the Zen of picking blackberries...

The Zen of picking blackberries I hear you say? Well yeah, why not? If there's Zen in Motorcycle Maintenence, it's certainly there in blackberries as well.

I was thinkin' as I picked away, and I found myself using the blackberry as a metaphor for Ideas, Goals, or Opportunities. A that's when it hit me, The Zen of Picking Blackberries...

• Take your time - the juciest blackberries are often behind leaves
• When reaching for a blackberry be mindful of your feet
• Sometimes you need a stick to reveal the biggest blackberries
• Juicy blackberries are often right beside nettles
• Blackberry thorns go deep into careless muscles
• Sometimes the best flavour is not in the biggest blackberry
• Beware of small creatures laying eggs in big blackberries
• Sometimes you have to squash one blackberry to keep wasps off others
• Beautiful blackberries are often down by your feet
• Blackberry bushes reward repeated visits
• Blackberries are fine, but effort gives you Blackberry Crumble
• What looks wonderful on the outside may be rotten on the in
• If a blackberry won't be plucked, don't pluck
• Different bushes produce different ripenings
• Getting to the best blackberries requires care and effort
• Sometimes you have to accept that a blackberry is out of reach
• Blackberries are often at their best when mixed with another fruit
• While you're collecting, it's ok to taste
• Rain is no barrier to finding great blackberries
• A blackberry lasts for seconds, but jam lasts all winter

 Worth some thought maybe?