A single orange dangling from its stem

I catch a familiar scent of orange blossom as I walk around my neighborhood, a scent I can’t help but associate with spring and summer at my grandma’s house.

A view of the top of the orange tree and the blue sky

I spent nearly every childhood summer at her place, a reprieve from having spent the previous ten, much colder, months in northern Europe. Her orange tree represented the hot California sun, with oranges the color to match.

A tall glass of her hand-squeezed orange juice on a hot and dry summer day rejuvenates the body with every sweet and delightful sip. A sweeter or juicier orange simply does not exist.

This vibrant Valencia Orange Tree is a fixture of my grandma’s house, as much as her 70’s era wood-paneled eastern wall is to her living room. And I’m so grateful she hasn’t torn the tree out, the unfortunate trend of many southern California homeowners.

My grandma’s orange tree has dependably provided oranges – and at times, other grafted citruses – for over six decades and is still going strong. And my grandma has dependably provided for her family – in all the traditionally unromantic ways – for just as long and, at nearly 85, still does what she can.

A view of the inside of the orange tree

I am learning a lesson from my grandma and her orange tree. A lesson in dependability and what it means to provide for others without asking for anything in return.

Throughout my life, I have probably slept more nights at my grandma’s house than anywhere else. And although my grandma and I haven’t always seen eye to eye, she has always been ready to provide for those in need. It’s in her nature, just as it’s the nature of an orange tree to blossom in the spring and fruit oranges in the summer.

If and when I get to her age, I hope to look back on my life knowing I was as trustworthy and dependable. That I provided for those that I love without doing so out of some sense of obligation or as part of some formal transaction.

I’m grateful for all that she has done for everyone and for all the good memories her house and her tree have enabled.