Peering Through the Pears

It had changed everything for us, the juicy, sweet taste of the golden fruit, the ripe pears we plucked from that pear tree in our back garden.

It was the tree that we climbed when we were younger and we had hidden in the branches camouflaged by the leaves. It was almost as if the tree would grow extra leaves instantly to hide us. My sister was always the enemy and when she had friends over, the 'enemy force' grew, and we needed to stay away from that most dangerous enemy. We would observe and spy on the enemy before deciding what action we would take.

The enemy however had figured out our plan one day, because Jason was too slow in climbing and his bottom and legs had been spotted scrambling up to our secret spy headquarters.

“Tom, Tom, I can see you and Jason up there, you aren’t fooling us.”

“Just go away! Jason don’t listen to her.”

“Well Mom said you need to come and eat lunch!”

“Leave us alone Lisa, we will come inside when we have finished our pears.”

“I’ll let Mom know you aren’t listening. And that you are eating the pears meant for all of us, you pigs.”

“Tell her, tattle tale, go on then, run along and tell her, see if we care.”

We both then bit into our golden sweet 'marine corps rations.'

Suddenly we could see things that we had never seen before. We experienced night vision and X - ray vision all at once.

From up there in the tree, we had a different understanding, a different view of the world. Looking over the wall into my neighbour’s garden we saw it. It was a vision, it appeared in front of us, as he walked out to his swimming pool to join his wife sunning herself at the side of the pool.

Jason and I were mesmerized, we continued to eat our pears and the fascination grew. As we continued to eat our pears, more was revealed, and no I am not talking about his wife, I mean a movie - like vision played out before us.

“Jason did you see what I saw?”

“What did you see Tom? I saw some stuff but not sure it’s the same as what you saw?”

“Jason, do you think we should tell him? Do you think what we saw was true?”

“I don’t know? Perhaps we should tell him what we saw, but he may be angry with us, and what if it’s wrong?”

We climbed down the tree and went inside to have some lunch. Bewildered and silent we sat there.

“Well, it’s about time boys, the girls have had their lunch, Lisa called you a while ago, stop staring off into space you two. I don’t know what you are playing at! Next time you come when I call you okay?”

“Mom we didn’t want to eat with the girls anyway.” I said snapping out of my stupor.

“Tom, that’s not nice! Lisa and Tracey had baked some cookies for you both, but they have decided to give them to the dogs because you were rude to them.”

“We don’t care, do we Jason? Anyway we know stuff that they don’t….”

I stopped myself, we had vowed not to discuss it and there I was blurting out what he had vowed not to.

“What stuff?” asked Mom cocking her head to the side

“Oh nothing, it’s just a game we are playing.”

“Well eat up and place your dishes in the dishwasher, and Tom please stack them properly, I don’t want to come back in here and have to rearrange everything.”

“Yes Okay Mom, I do know how to pack the dishwasher.”

“Jason, can you help him? You know how to stack a dishwasher don’t you?”

“Oh yes, Mrs Wilkins, I most definitely do.”

I shot a look at Jason and he followed up.

“But, but Tom also knows how to pack the dishwasher.”

“Good then I’ll leave you both to it.”

The next day I saw Mr Baird our neighbour, walking towards his mail box, I had also been summonsed to mail box duty.

“Mr Baird, how are you?”

“I am well, thank you Tom. And how are you young man?”

Mr Baird. Oh, I’m fine, um Mr Baird, I don’t know how else to say this except to say it. You must tell your wife not to take that job.”

“What? How do you know about her job? Have you been reading our mail?”

“No, Mr Baird, I just know that it is not good for you or for her that your wife takes that job.”

“Why? She has received a good offer and it will help us financially, and we can save up to plan our family together.”

“You will not have a family if your wife takes that job Mr Baird.”

“What nonsense! Stay away from our mail box and stop stealing our mail, that is a crime you know!”

“I never stole any of your mail Mr Baird, let’s just say I know stuff.”

“You know nothing, now run along before I talk to your parents about you nosing around in my business!”

Jason and I never spoke again of that day, I never told him about the conversation I had with Mr Baird, until months later when I called him.

“It’s happened Jason, the vision, it’s happened, exactly as we saw it. I told Mr Baird that it would happen and that his wife shouldn’t take that job, but he didn’t want to listen, he told me I had been stealing his mail, and nosing around in his stuff.”

“You mean it happened? Just like we saw it in the pear tree? It actually happened? Wow that’s weird. I had forgotten about that.”

“The removalists are here and I saw men in suits meeting with Mr Baird, and Mrs Baird hasn’t been around for weeks, I haven’t seen her car. He kept saying she was on a business trip, but a business trip for weeks is a bit much.”

“I think we need to climb that tree again Tom.”

“Why not come over tomorrow?”

“Okay Tom, I’ll see you tomorrow.”

The following day Jason came over and we climbed the tree and ate a juicy pear just like we did the previous time. Immediately after climbing that tree, I ran to one of the removalist guys who was busy loading some furniture onto the truck.

“Your daughter will get better and you have to play the lottery tomorrow, you are going to win big!”

“Listen youngster, I’m not sure how you know anything about my daughter? But playing the lottery is for mugs, your chances of winning are the same as being struck by lightning twice in the same place.”

“Sir how about you play the lottery tonight and if you win you give me half, and if not then I will pay you back for your lottery ticket?”

“Okay that sounds fair.”

“Good stuff sir, I’ll see you tomorrow, and our lives will be forever changed. What is your name sir?”

“I am Brett, Brett Farrel is my name, and kid, you better have my money when I come and see you tomorrow.”

“Mr Brett Farrel, I’ll have your money, as long as you bring me mine.” I said with an air of confidence that he didn’t understand, and neither did I.

That was the last I saw of that removal guy, Mr Brett Farrel. I phoned his place of employment, a week a later.

“Hi my name is Tom Wilkins, I am looking for Mr Brett Farrel, can I speak to him please?”

“Hi Tom. Brett resigned about a week ago, said he no longer needed this loser job, said we should all shove it!”

“Okay thank you.” I said disappointed.

Jason and I climbed that pear tree again a few more times after that, but we received no more visions, we ate many pears and sat up there amongst the leaves a number of times, but alas nothing was forthcoming, and eventually the novelty wore off.

About three years later I was in my final year of school and looking forward to going to university the following year. Jason and I had long forgotten the pear tree. We had outgrown those silly boyish games.

I approached my home after a rather hot and stuffy walk from the bus stop. I opened the gate and saw a man standing speaking to my mother on our front porch, so I walked down the driveway. The man was well dressed in an Italian suit, he looked like a fancy lawyer or something, and he drove a metallic blue Mustang.

He turned and looked at me. “There you are you bastard, you are the reason! You come here, when I get my hands on you I’ll..”

I was taken aback and moved away from the lunatic.

“Sir would you mind telling me what this is all about?” said my Mom rather surprised by the sudden change in his demeanor.

“It’s ever since I met him, he’s a witch I tell you, or um, or a, what’s a male witch?”

“A warlock?” said my mother rather annoyed.

“Yes that’s what he is.”

“Tom, this gentleman says you know him and he thinks you are a warlock?”

“Hello, sir I am not sure what you mean? I definitely do not know you and I’m not into fantasy like witches and warlocks.”

“I am Brett Farrel.”

I was stunned into silence.

“Let me tell you what you have done and don’t play innocent with me! I have spoken to Mr Baird and he told me about you, predicting his situation with his wife, and you predicted my future too, except you got it wrong! My daughter is not healing, she is getting worse! And you have something to do with it! I just know it!”

“Oh, now I understand. Mom, this gentleman said he would pay us half the lottery winnings that he won, that would be $25 million, but he decided to keep the money and run, and he lied to me, to us. It seems the pear tree does not like liars sir, that’s all I can say.”

“Tom what pear tree? What on earth are you talking about?”

“It’s a long story Mom and I don’t know how it works, all I know is that if Mr Brett Farrel pays us like he said he would, his daughter will get better, it’s not me, it’s the tree.”