Summary

Towards the end of summer, if the weather is suitable, blackberries near the speaker’s home ripen. First there would be just one purple berry on a bough of underripe green and red ones. The speaker’s friend ate the purple berry, which incited their desire for more. Soon, the red ones turn purple and the speaker and their friends venture out with any vessel they can find. They go all over their farmland, dampening their shoes and getting scratched by thorns, gathering berries. They are careful to layer hard green ones at the bottom, with ripe black ones on top. Soon, their hands become scratched and sticky with berry juice. The group of friends hoard their berries in a tub in the cowshed. Shortly after, however, they find the berries are going moldy and fermenting. The speaker feels cheated that all their hard...