Article May 1, 2000 Issue

what we learned from the pickers

By Cheryl F. M. Petersen

Although it may take only a week to harvest the cherries in our orchard, our pickers harvest cherries for months. Southern climates call for an earlier harvest than ours in Washington State. The pickers start in California and move north, going from orchard to orchard as the cherries ripen. They help my husband and farmers like him immensely along their way.

This coming and going in the harvest season is necessary in the farming community, yet it sometimes leads to uncertainty. Will the pickers include us on their route this year? Analyzing statistics, getting promises, and counting heads only make things more tense. However, my husband and I have found a spiritual answer that has decreased harvest-time stress.

These workers are quite stable. They know their job, and they do it well. Passing through the orchards is a lifestyle they are used to and expect. In fact, those we work with are quite happy with it. The coming and going is of little consequence to them.

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