The Farmer’s Markets are in full bloom. East Memphis’ Botanic Garden hosts a market every Wednesday. I went this week to pick up whatever I could get for the $2 in my pocket. At one booth, a boy said to me, “You should get some tomatoes. There’s no such thing as an unhealthy fruit.” Credit is due, first of all, for his knowing that the savory tomato is not a vegetable. But he is also correct that fruits are a good thing, despite what we have been told.
Who has been saying that fruit is bad? It would seem that just about everyone. It is a poisonous fruit, after all, that sends Snow White into a coma. And wouldn’t a simple target suffice for the overly dramatic William Tell?
Fruit was off to a bad start from the beginning. The Bible records the fall of humankind as being related to the consumption of a forbidden fruit. When Adam and Eve are confronted, they hastily reach for the leaves of another fruit tree, the fig. This, of course, doesn’t say much for the actual fig, which is first passed over for the illegal fruit, and again overlooked for its decorative leaves. God becomes unhappy–apparently showing his dislike for figs. Jesus hated figs too. He once cursed and withered a fig tree for no reason. Apparently, the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree.
Speaking of figs, it is clear that figgy pudding is among the least desirable of all Christmas treats. It would be the worst if not for the most notorious of all desserts, the fruit cake.
Many theologians have had a rough experience with fruit. Augustine claimed that he developed a sense of guilt only after stealing peaches. John Calvin believed that Eve’s apple-bite was an indication that each of us is born depraved and sinful. Martin Luther criticized rich people of his day for doing nothing more than sitting around and chatting, while they flatulate and roast pears. Some scholars believe he was right; others suspect it was just sour grapes.
Berries are sometimes fruit and sometimes last names. Dave Barry is an iconic writer and a popular humorist. Your last 90 seconds probably would have been better spent reading something by him.
