Take a Bite of This Apple

By Del Duduit

I love a fresh Red Delicious Apple. My fav!!

There is nothing quite like the loud snap it makes when you sink your teeth into one. When the juice dribbles down your chin, you know you’ve got a good one.

There are more than 100 varieties of the fruit: The Granny Smith, Honeycrisp, McIntosh Red, Fuji, Gala, Braeburn, Golden Delicious, Paula Red, Jonagold, Cortland, Cameo, Jazz, Empire, Cripps, Baldwin and Jonathan to name a few.

But my choice is the Red Delicious.

And there are dozens of ways to prepare this fantastic red ball: Applesauce, Apple Dumplings, Apple Crisp, Brown Butter Apple Loaf, Apple Layer Cake, Glazed Apple Fritters, Apple Cobbler, Skillet Cinnamon Apples, Fried Apples, Baked Apples and the All-American classic, homemade Apple Pie.

Along with the versatility of the Apple comes a wide range of health benefits.

They are nutritious and ideal for weight loss. Apples are good for your heart, and they are linked to a lower risk of diabetes. The fruit also has a probiotics effect and promotes good bacteria. They are a wonderful source of fiber and have been associated with helping to fight Asthma.

Angie and I drink a shot of Apple Cider Vinegar (with the Mother) each day – mixed with Emergen-C to take away the nasty taste. But it’s excellent for you.

I even have an Apple phone and watch.

Apples for the most part have about 95 calories and less than 25 grams of carbohydrates. They are packed with Vitamin C, Potassium and Vitamin K.

Although a study slammed the slogan, “An apple a day keeps the doctor away,” a small fraction of adults who eat one a day have fewer medical complications, according to a study in the Harvard Health Publishing, Harvard Medical School, April 2015. Yes, there was a study to investigate the slogan!

But along with the good, always comes the bad.

Apples contain high levels of sugar and cyanide. In addition, crunching into an apple each day can lead to teeth erosion. And according to an article published recently in The Telegraph (United Kingdom), the “Apple’s pips contain Amygdalin, a sugar and cyanide compound that ingested in small amounts is easy to deal with, but which can cause death.”

WOW- I never knew that eating an apple can kill you. I’ve heard it all.

Apples appear in several religious traditions and are often a symbol of mystery and forbidden fruit.

Apples are featured quite often in fairy tales such as Snow White or the Brothers Grimm. The evil stepmother,  you will recall, offered Snow White her poisonous apple to lure her into a deep sleep.

According to the legend, Isaac Newton was inspired to conclude the law of gravity after he was clunked on the head by a falling apple.

The apple is considered a suck-up tool to teachers from students who are testing the bribery waters. And it’s the perfect addition in the ultimate Christmas gift — the fruit cake.

Later this fall, many people will take part in bobbing for apples during Halloween. And earlier this year, my wife and I visited the Big Apple itself, New York City. There are a few suggestions of how the nickname came about. The most common accepted one is that the phrase appeared in the book The Wayfarer in New York (1909) in which the author, Edward Martin wrote:

“Kansas is apt to see in New York a greedy city…It inclines to think that the big apple gets a disproportionate share of the national sap.”

And of course, the apple is associated with the forbidden fruit from God that Eve bit and offered to Adam, thus which led to the fall of Man. I guess that is why worms are depicted in cartoons in half of an apple.

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The Apple.

It’s been around a long time and has been used and abused. It’s considered to be healthy yet a slow boat to death at the same time.

The Apple is shiny and inviting but can be bruised easily, thus ruining both the appearance and taste.

What does scripture say about the Apple?

King David wrote that he wanted to be the apple of God’s eye.

Keep me as the apple of the eye, hide me under the shadow of thy wings. (Psalm 17: 8 KJV)

What does that mean?

In my opinion, it means that God will keep an eye on you and protect you because you are precious in His sight — as long as you aspire to be obedient.

If God can keep David – a man who committed adultery with Bathsheba and ordered the murder of Uriah – He can watch over you. But you must make an effort not to bruise Him.

Sometimes I feel like David. I want to make Him happy, but I have messed up throughout my life. I have also been wrongfully accused of things, but I know I’m still in His vision.

Keep my commandments, and live, and my law as the apple of thine eye. (Proverbs 7: 2 KJV)

All of these thoughts ran through my mind this past weekend when Angie and I walked with our friend and United States Representative to Congress, Bill Johnson, in the Jackson Apple Festival Parade.

We had a great time and took part in what Angie called a “little slice of Americana” as we strolled in the night time parade, which has been around since 1937.

The Apple.

A little piece of heaven in taste, and a larger than life meaning and connotation.

Have you ever heard the expression: One bad apple can spoil the bunch? This refers to a situation in which one person’s negative demeanor or bad behavior can affect an entire group of people, influencing them to have a similar attitude or to engage in the same bad behavior.

Don’t’ be that one person who does that. I experienced that this weekend when a single comment made by a person tried to thwart my enthusiasm. They tried to put a bruise on me, but I have shined it off and bit around it and gotten to the good part of the apple.

Before you speak or hit send, consider if you are that “bad apple” trying to ruin the taste for everyone else.

The Apple.

We can dress it up in desserts and put caramel over it on a stick – yum.

But I like it best just plain and crisp.

I want to be the Apple of God’s eye. Do you?

Del Duduit is an award-winning writer and author who lives in Lucasville, Ohio with his wife, Angie. They attend Rubyville Community Church. Follow his blog at delduduit.com/blog and his Twitter @delduduit. He is represented by Cyle Young of Hartline Literary Agency.

His first book — BUCKEYE BELIEVER – 40 Days of Devotions for The Ohio State Faithful –can be purchased on Amazon here.