Beneath the Changing Sun
Mahwah, NJ
2025, Junior, Creative Writing
The scent of warm and soft peaches, bursting with sweet, floral juice lives in my memory. The sticky juice on my fingers, the tender inside that melts on my tongue, and my grandfather’s laughter echoing across the orchard he called home.
For as long as I could ever remember, summer meant peaches on the farm. However, during the pandemic, summer months vanished without enjoying those moments.
Now I pressed my face against the car window as it pulled up to the dusty driveway of the farm. As the orchard came into view, or at least what should have been the orchard, I was puzzled. The whole orchard felt unfamiliar and the smell that greeted it was sharper and brighter.
The peaches were gone.
Unfamiliar green leaves and fruits hung from the branches bending under a hot sun. The scene looked more like Florida than Georgia.
As my grandfather approached to greet us, I detected a change on my grandfather’s face. He looked older, more tired, and somewhat disheartened. I started to wonder what had happened the last two years.
“Where are the peach trees?” I asked my grandfather.
He didn’t answer for a few seconds. Gazed out at the orchard, he let out a deep sigh.
“They’re gone,” he finally said with a soft and tender voice. “The weather has changed too much. Every summer, it was getting hotter, drier. The peaches just couldn’t take it anymore. My business wasn’t doing well. The peaches were all dried up and couldn’t survive at all. So, I had to make a decision for the farm to survive. I decided to change from growing peaches to growing something that can survive this weather. Citrus.”
I just stood there, speechless. I stared at the rows of citrus trees that filled the orchard. It just looked like it belonged to someone else. I didn’t feel like home at all.
As my grandfather showed me around his new orchard, he pointed to the new trees with young citrus fruits that were already starting to ripen in the hot sun.
“These are valencia oranges, some meyer lemons down at the end. They don’t mind the heat so much.”
I reached out and touched one of the fruits. It was smooth and firm.
I plopped down into the brown, muddy soil as I asked, “But what about the peach pie contest we used to hold every year?” My voice came out smaller than I meant it to be. I couldn’t hide my disappointment that our tradition is forever lost because of the changing weather.
My grandfather smiled but a look of sadness was in his eyes as he said, “Maybe we can try something new this year. How about some lemon pie?”
“Will you help me make a pie?” he said with a faint smile with the corners of his mouth. I paused as the truth of it all set in. I nodded grudgingly as I moved to stand next to him and gazed at the orchard’s new perspective, which is likely to be my new future.
He motioned to follow him into the old farmhouse kitchen. Memories flashed back where we made our annual peach pie. Instead this year, we will be making lemon pie.
As we rolled out the crust, I realized that the orchard and these trees have changed, but the farm’s heart hasn’t. My disappointment hid that realization from me! The love and memories we shared were what I cherished most about the farm, not the peaches. Our bond is growing stronger through every season, every challenge, much like this one.
When the warm lemon pie came out of the oven, I took the first bite. It was different and bright, but it had a new kind of unexpected sweetness. And in that moment, I felt a sense of relaxation.
I realized that change was inevitable. The world was changing, the seasons shifting, and our traditions might have to bend to survive. But just like the orchard, we could grow new roots that were deeper, stronger, and more resilient than before.
I promised myself to carry this lesson home. I wanted to remember that loving the land means listening to it and adapting with care, even when things feel uncertain. It isn’t just the past we cherish with my family, it is the future we are willing to build together.
And maybe, just maybe, that was the sweetest harvest of all.
Reflection
Reflection
I recently read an article about how the climate in the state of Georgia is rapidly changing, and it is getting hotter than it used to be. As a result, many peach farmers are struggling to adapt to this new change because their peach crops need to have both cold and warm seasons alternating to grow properly. Climate change is inevitable, and the continuing changing climate is forcing many farmers to be resilient and listen to their land’s needs. While it is important for people to realize that their behavior contributes to accelerating climate change, it is also important for people to realize that climate change can be slowed down with certain measures but it cannot be stopped. Therefore, it is important for people to adjust to the changes and the needs of the crops, similar to how the farmers in Georgia had to change their crops to adapt to the changes in weather.