The Fruit Truck Man

Every Tuesday in summer, a man named Mr. Osei drives an old pickup truck full of fruit through our neighborhood, ringing a bell. He sells watermelons, peaches, cherries and corn from his family's farm two hours away.

The kids hear the bell and come running. He gives each of them a cherry. He knows which families like which fruit. He saves the ripest peaches for an old woman on our street who can't walk far.

When my daughter turned seven, he stopped in front of our house and gave her a tiny watermelon with "HAPPY BIRTHDAY" carved into the rind. She talked about it for a week.

He's been driving the same route for eighteen years. He says it's the best part of his week. It's the best part of ours, too.