Page 66 of Big Island Sunset
He chuckled. “Hardly.”
“Oh.” She realized that she didn’t even know where he’d lived as a kid. “Where did you grow up?”
“In a lifeless California suburb not far from Los Angeles.” He held the front gate open for Emma and then closed it behind them. “I was a surf rat. Moved to Hawai‘i right after high school.Got a job on a farm that provided room and board in exchange for half a day’s work.
“I had no experience with farming. It was just grunt work - mac nuts, mostly. But after a while, I realized I was even happier up a tree than I was out on the water. I fell in love with growing things. Eventually I moved from Maui to Kaua‘i to study permaculture, and then I ended up here.”
While he was talking, he pulled a healthy little sapling out of his truck.
“Your gift,” he said shyly. “If you want it.”
“What is it?”
“Durian.”
“What’s that?”
“You’ve never tried durian?”
She shook her head.
“They call it the king of fruits. There aren’t many trees on the island yet, but they grow well here. They take a long time to start producing, sometimes as much as ten years. They make big fruits with a thick, spiky shell.”
“Sounds like a lot of effort,” she said, eying the sapling dubiously.
Keith grinned. “They’re worth it. The fruit inside is like nothing else. Rich as custard, and sweet, with a complex flavor. Not everyone likes it — it’s sort of love it or hate it, for most people — but if you hate it, you can sell each fruit for close to a hundred dollars each.”
“That much?” she asked in surprise.
“Like I said, there aren’t many mature trees on the island. And people who love themlovethem. They’re a rare treat.”
“Thank you.”
“I grafted this one myself.” He pointed to a spot low on the trunk where the rootstock met the fruit-producing part of the tree. “It’s my favorite variety. No name yet — it actually comesfrom a tree I started from seed when I moved to the Big Island. This was the first year that it’s produced, and the fruit was phenomenal. This would be the first sapling planted.”
“Okay. Let’s plant it.”
“Here, would you hold it?”
“Sure.” Emma accepted the baby tree, cradling it in both hands while Keith pulled more supplies out of the back of his truck.
“The saplings are sensitive to the sun,” he explained, holding up a length of black fabric, “so it’s best to use shade cloth until they’re a bit bigger.”
“Let’s go find it a home.”
“I think I saw a good spot near the back of your lot. You don’t necessarily want it in a high-traffic area, since they can do some serious damage when they fall. You wouldn’t have to worry about that anytime soon, but still. Don’t want any of your grandbabies injured by falling durian.”
She laughed. It was strange to think of another generation running around the Kealoha place, but wasn’t that the whole point? She was stewarding the land for generations to come. Viewed in that light, a tree that took a decade to bear fruit… well, that wasn’t so long, really. Kai would still be a teenager.
She was startled from her thoughts when something red zoomed past inches from her face. She stumbled to a stop, holding the sapling steady, and looked at Keith just as an overripe lychee bounced off the side of his head.
“Kai!” Emma’s eyes found the two kids up in the lychee tree.
He pelted Keith with another rotten lychee.
“Absolutely not!” she shouted.
Keith was laughing, but he put a hand up to hide his grin.
