everybody should have a pear tree in her life (page 219)

My homemade pear butter is Mattie’s favorite. I use pears picked from her friend’s tree when they are ripe. And you should know those pears don’t have the shelf life of store-bought, which go from days of being brick hard directly to inedible mush within a minute and a half. Tree-ripened pears are juicy enough to run down your arm to your elbow when you bite into them, and are as sweet as the lightest honey. You have to eat them over the sink. Everybody should have a pear tree in her life.