It was the taste of a certain kind of firm, flavorful guava which had been my favorite fruit as a child, and which I could not get in Vermont. I asked Ted about the apple, and it turned out to be a Russet. He had several trees that he had planted in the orchard, for they were his wife Joan's favorite apple. And so, every year, when we arrived at the orchard, I headed toward those trees, hoping that the night before there had been a strong wind to increase those apple drops. Ted would ask me as I climbed the small rise toward where our car was parked.
Russets are the best.
I asked him after we had exchanged hellos. He looked at me, pulling his head back as if to gauge if I was joking. The man I knew as the kind apple farmer was also a doctor. I laughed, and then moved on to our fall-back topic. For better or worse, we get to know people in a fuller way.