April Prompts #28
Kari’s #1: A gastronomic delight
WHAT THEY EAT
~for Mouawia
The blessed souls in Paradise–
that garden where one can eat
of the fruit of any tree but one–
eat figs.
Picked ripe,
dried soft and seedful,
sliced wide to hold rich
walnut halves,
toothsome, gold. On each
a dribble of
tahini,
richer, barely bitter.
The blessed souls partake
with crunch and glide,
immortal tongues
and throats full satisfied.
The blessed lick
their fingers clean, and sigh.
April Prompts #25 HOARDINGS
Kari’s #3: people with animal or insect characteristics
HOARDINGS
Under the eaves,
in an abandoned robin’s nest,
a flying squirrel stashes mushrooms.
Chipmunks carry acorns,
sunflower seeds, kernels of corn
to hoard in their holes under the garage.
Cherry pits
in the mitten basket,
behind the cookbooks.
Between the rafters
dog kibble
piled in fiberglass nests.
In the freezer,
blueberries and broccoli,
applesauce and greens.
On the shelves,
jars of pickles, pails of honey,
bottles of water, cans of beans.
I have admired your body from afar–
as only an older woman can admire–
and here you are
the row in front of me
eating marinated beef from a plastic box,
watching the governor, two rows down.
You remove your mirrored shades.
Your green shirt
is tight across your shoulders.
Oh, has the music begun?
You finish the beef
and start on the berries.
GladErrand 