Bedtime as a kid meant Pomeroy Opposum Stories that my dad would weave off the top of his head for me and my delighted sister, Vanessa. These epic tales were sourced in the many hours he had spent exploring the wild, including the woods, fields, and Haw River of Chatham County.
The peace-making hero Pomeroy opposum lived in a persimmon tree along with his parents Big Bertha and Little John, and his nephew Baby Nu Nu who weighed 250 pounds and had a huge hollow in between his shoulder blades which came in handy for storing and carrying all kinds of things, including persimmons 
.
All Pomeroy’s animal friends had great names, like Cruiser and Bruiser the bear twins. They learned to work together to support each other through droughts, floods, and sparse harvests. Dad’s amazing adventures of the family of woods creatures planted seeds for my life-long love of local flora and my curiousity of our inter-connectedness (thanks Dad!). I love knowing that some of the same trees Dad camped and hunted under as a teenager, inspired my childhood story time and now nourish me with their beauty and gifts.
Yesterday my friend Leif Diamant and I were scouting out our trail for Friday’s Wild Autumn Walkabout at the Shakori Hills Festival when we discovered freshly-fallen-to-the-ground perfectly ripe persimmons. As I happily ate my first yummy persimmon of the year, I thought of Pomeroy who loved to lay around all day and feast on the sweet bright orange fruit.
If you’ve tried un-ripe persimmons you know they’ll make your mouth pucker and turn inside out. Some folks have heard you have to wait till the first frost to enjoy ripe persimmons but I find if you harvest them freshly-fallen off the ground this time of year, they have lost their astringency and are my favorite local fruit, close behind figs and the rare paw paws.
Leif and I also enjoyed hackberries and black haw berries right of the trees. Come join us as we delight in the fruits of fall and all other kinds of wild wonderment this Friday, October 8th from noon-2pm. Maybe we’ll even catch a glimpse of Pomeroy .
