My sister's neighbor has a pear tree in her backyard, so she brought some pears to my sister. My brother remembers that our great-grandparents had pear trees on their property and my great grandmother used to can the pears. My niece doesn't like pears because they are "gritty". I don't especially like fresh pears because I've never gotten good at selecting a ripe one. I like canned pears, though. Maybe I should go to Whole Foods and try the organic pears from their produce aisle. Maybe I'll just have an apple instead. How do you choose a good pear?