Apples

November 5, 2014 Photo (309/365): "Apples"

To me, autumn tastes like apples (though I'm sure some would argue for pumpkin). Although I enjoy some of the new "designer apples" -- Honey Crisp, Sweet Tango, etc. -- my go-to apple has always been the Macintosh (insert obvious tech coach Apple reference here). My dad would always bring home bags of crisp Macs in early fall and later in the season, bushels of "windfalls" -- imperfect Cortlands for baking. Our garage was perfumed with apples from late September throughout the holidays. Aromas of tart apples and cinnamon often wafted from the kitchen as my mom made steaming cups of hot apple cider, gallons of apple sauce, and her weekly apple pie. Fact: My mom makes the best pie crust in the world! I really need to sit down with her someday soon and try to inherit her skill (although I'm not much of a baker). 

When I spotted this bushel basket full of apples in the PHS Foods room today, it immediately reminded me of a song that my Grandma Dodo used to sing to me, "I love you a bushel and a peck!" The sight, smell, and taste of these apples, combined with the memory of that song created the perfect Proustian sensory memory for me this morning -- a feeling of warmth and happiness, love and home.