Miniature kiwis
What constitutes an ordinary adventure in our lives?
How do we discover the extraordinary hiding amidst the ordinary?
Is it possible to discover magic in our life when we least expect it?
Is it possible to feast upon tropical fruit growing along the shores of Lake Superior in late October?
in the Upper Peninsula
We wait eagerly, quietly.
We anticipate that the next adventure awaits just around the corner.
We await the phone call, the email, the text message, the invitation.
Yes, my friends, we await the invitation.
In late October
Someone calls and shares something which is unique.
They invite us to see, to photograph, to pick, to eat.
How could we refuse?
Our heart beats faster and faster, imagining how the ordinary becomes extraordinary, and we’re witness to it.
Such pretty little things!
My friend, Deb, grows miniature kiwi on trellises against her house up in the hills of Herman, way above those of us nesting against Lake Superior’s shores. (OK, she’s only a dozen miles away from that lapping lake.)
She asked if we might fancy some kiwis.
Really?
You’ve got to be kidding!
Kiwis are tropical plants. Who might imagine them growing in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan, where snow dusts our October days?
Vine creatures
Yet, apparently, grow they do.
On vines the tiny little fruit multiply.
(They taste better after frost arrives, believe it or not!)
Artistic kiwi study
When someone invites you to view the extraordinary, you abandon your daily chores immediately.
Even if you have other plans.
Even if you think you don’t want to go.
ALWAYS follow the trail of the extraordinary, my friends, when it’s disguised as the ordinary.
A bowl full. Some to eat; some to freeze!
I’m here to attest: miniature kiwis are delicious! We’ve frozen three pint-sized bags. The rest of the fruits ripen on the counter.
They’re delicious in your cereals, atop grains, just popped in your mouth at a whim. The ripe ones melt in your awaiting mouth. Keep the unripe ones until their skin shivers and they’re soft to touch. You’ll know.
I never knew this until today. Thank goodness that life keeps providing adventures, day after day. (Adventures we might miss if we weren’t peering into the ordinary, attempting to see its latest gift.)
What extraordinary ordinary gift were you given lately?
P.S. Just decided–must have a kiwi smoothie tomorrow morning before work! My mouth is watering already.
Lake Superior Spirit 
The professor is quite amazed! Wowawee! It’s marvelous. Should the professor try to do this somewhere? Yes, it is possible to discover magic in the least likely and unexpected places. The professor travels “Rather Quite” often to monitor a place at various stages of time throughout history. While vexed more often than not; it needs to be done and he is convinced he’s the only capable one for the task. Yep! magic? Yep! Certainly; of a Punchyish nature of course.
Love the Kiwi photo!
My mouth is watering……
Wonderful pictures!!!!!!!
And who knew???!!!!!!!!!
Really? Up there? That is so cool. Seems like maybe you could grow some? Do they taste like the kiwis we find at the grocery store? When you freeze them, what do you use them for? Very interesting!
Kathy – You clearly provided my daily dose of learning today. I had NO idea about ANY of this. None.
Miniature kiwi? Didn’t know.
Grown on a trellis? Didn’t know.
Taste better after a frost? Didn’t know.
You asked, “What extraordinary ordinary gift were you given lately?”
Yesterday morning I got to have breakfast with my friend Karen who moved two-hours away to Indiana last year. We sat in the booth and enjoyed a wonderful catch-up session over french toast and multiple cups of hot tea.
Expecting an obituary from my sister, however, the envelope yielded a check, 4 figures…and no obituary . Totally unexpected….she is like that!
Forgot to say, love the kiwis…how do they taste…like the ones we get in the grocery produce section?
Life
So I had to Google, “Can I grow Kiwi in Nova Scotia” ? And BOOM! learned that there is a hardy, Kiwi vine that is a fast grower and survives very low winter temperatures (-35 F or C). Apparently even sweeter than “regular” ones and don’t need peeling. I’m in. When I move I’m gonna be planting Kiwi vines and will report back. Love finding cool stuff like this.
My “extraordinary/ordinary gift” was learning about Kiwi vines that I could grow here !
Oh, how wonderful! And who knew? I wonder if kiwis will grow here? A kiwi smoothie sounds so delicious. Wish I could stop by to sample your extraordinary mini kiwis. 🙂 My extraordinary gift today, aside from reading about kiwis growing along the shores of Lake Superior, was an ah-ha moment while I was walking/meditating. Or maybe it was the walk itself. Or the scrumptious breakfast I had this morning. It’s all extraordinary. 😀
What extraordinary little fruits kiwis are! At first I thought they looked like ripening mangoes, then they looked like fur-less kiwi fruits that we buy in the stores. Your link confirmed that they are mini versions of the furry variety! But I wonder if they taste the same? My extraordinary moments happen when I play “ask and it is given”, and the asked for happens, although I should know better than to think it extraordinary, when law of attraction says it must be. It still amazes me though. 🙂
Who knew? What a fascinating story. There is a place here called Edible Landscapes that sells kiwi plants. I may succumb now and get one. After all, we are a little further south here in Virginia.
It’s funny you should post this today. Maybe it’s the universe’s “ha-ha” moment. I was thinking about adding the subtitle “finding the extraordinary moments in ordinary days” to my blog title. Isn’t that what it is to be fully alive, Kathy? ❤
Mmm, kiwi smoothie. I can’t imagine anything farther north than where you are, except Canada and the north pole. Being this close to the equator takes away that northern imagination, but it comes back when I read your blogs. 🙂
Like you, my favorite part of any day, every day, is realizing the extraordinary in the ordinary – always right in front of our faces.
However, I have no mini-kiwis in my backyard, or a friend’s backyard. The fact that you do – I’d say that’s extraordinarily extraordinary!
Such good info. If I were younger I’d plant a vine or two. I read about growing them and per some of the orchard sites the kiwi will grow in Zone 8. Your friend must have a micro climate at her house. Marvelous I say. But I think the info said they’s grow to zone 4. Don’t know what zone ya’ll are in but from the pics it looks as if the vine is growing in the yard and not in a container. So wonder if she/he grew them from a seed or if bought from a nursery per mail order or what. Do she/he protect the vine from severe freezing in the winter?
That is very cool, thank you!
Oh the kiwis grow like this? they look like this when raw? aaah!! All we have seen are the brown ones, expensive & luxurious fruits fr us in India.
kiwi smoothie…cheers to you!
What a wonderful treat to have fresh grown kiwis on your kitchen counter in October! It’s a great way to hold on to the summer!
What a wonderful adventure you had, Kathy. How true this is – never pass up an opportunity to see and experience the extraordinary! When we see kiwis down here, they are humdinger-expensive, so I am just a little bit envious of you right now. 😉
Enjoy your kiwi-shake!
Who knew this about kiwis?! Sounds delicious. And I have to agree, when an opportunity arises to see kiwi in late October in Michigan, drop everything and run see the phenomenon! They sound yummy!
Hugs from Ecuador,
Kathy
An amazing opportunity for sure! Wonderful what we get when we leave ourselves open for new and unusual adventures. Enjoy your bounty;kiwi smoothies sound great!
I was given a bag of fresh chestnuts last Friday. They’re not as exotic as kiwis, but since nut trees grow slowly I’m grateful to anyone who’s willing to share.
There is a woman in Traverse City who has a kiwi vine in her garden, grown only for its looks, if you can believe that — not for the fruit! She does not, for some obscure reason, believe in edible gardens. Go figure!
Finding the extraordinary in the ordinary is the best! I’m wondering with everyone else just what these kiwis taste like. Then I’m wondering if I should plant some. Mostly I’m wondering if you’ll share that smoothie 🙂
I love kiwis! Never had any miniature ones before. Do they taste different than the regular ones?
Greetings from the Keweenaw, Kathy! Thank you for all of the inspiring and real writing. And the appreciation of The Lake 😉 I hope your garden takes off. Stop by our online store at http://www.keweenawtrading.com when you have a few minutes.
That is indeed amazing, Kathy, that kiwis can grow so far North! A trip to a friend’s kiwi vine would be my kind of adventure too.
So very cool! Just how big are the mini kiwis? Like grape sized?
I like the idea of following the extraordinary. Sometimes I think I need help recognizing it!
Yes, to all that inquired, they are grape-sized and you don’t peel them. The unripe are sour and the ripe are very sweet. (And, Karma, we all need help at times in recognizing the extraordinary in the ordinary. Our minds try to convince us that ordinary is boring at times. I think we must learn to see past our mind’s tendency to take away the mystery.)
This is too cool! I sooooo need to get me some of those vines!
amazing what we find when look and set aside our everyday
I never knew there were such things as miniature kiwis and that they grow so far north. What a delicious adventure you had! 🙂