So, funny story. When we moved from our old house to one on my mother-in-law’s property, my daughter was distraught over leaving the beautiful old weeping cherry tree we had at the other house. So her grandmother promised to plant her one here. And so she did…or so she thought, anyway. We waited years for it to grow, and it soon became clear it wasn’t a weeping anything. But that was okay.
Then this year, Cherry (why, yes, we name our trees) began to bear fruit. And I gotta tell you, those, ahem, cherries, were the biggest, fuzziest, yellowest cherries we ever did see. 😉 Yeah…so either Nonna got the trees she’d ordered mixed up, or they sent her the wrong one, LOL. Because Cherry is most assuredly a peach tree. And at the moment, I have a giant bowl full of small but lovely peaches on my counter, waiting to be cut up and frozen. So of course–word of the week!
While the English word peach comes straight from the French word pesche of the same meaning, if you trace it back to the Latin, it actually gets interesting. The Latin word actually means “Persian apple.” Peach trees originated in China, apparently, but they came to Europe by way of Persia. In fact, in Ancient Greek, the word persikos could mean EITHER Persian or peach! They were that interchangeable! I had no idea. But the Persians must have really loved their peaches if it was the fruit other nations associated so fully with them.
Peach began to be applied to people in the 1700s. First to mean “attractive woman” in the 1750s and then “a good person” around 1900.
And they’ve been my son’s favorite fruit since around 2010, when he first bit into one. 😉 I swear that boy could eat a whole basket of them in a day if we let him… How about you? Are you a peach fan?
Roseanna M. White is a bestselling, Christy Award winning author who has long claimed that words are the air she breathes. When not writing fiction, she’s homeschooling her two kids, editing, designing book covers, and pretending her house will clean itself. Roseanna is the author of a slew of historical novels that span several continents and thousands of years. Spies and war and mayhem always seem to find their way into her books…to offset her real life, which is blessedly ordinary.
I love peaches! This story reminds me of my peach story. Many years ago (after I was an adult and had moved away from home) my parents had a peach tree in the side year of their house. Oddly, I had never eaten a peach right off the tree. That particular day was hot and humid. I picked that peach, and after washing it quickly, took a bite. It was warm and juicy! Tasted like peach cobbler without all the sugar. Best peach I ever had!!
So the other day I gave my kids a peach & my 8 year came and asked if he could have another and I said yes. And he said he was glad because it was the last one. But I had bought 10 peaches. Apparently he only asked because it was the last one – because he had already eaten FIVE peaches in a span of 15 minutes! So yes, my kids – or at least one of them – likes peaches!
Just like your son I could eat the whole basket! I love peaches! I have the best recipe for peach jam! I used to make it all the time.