Tuesday, August 5, 2014

Tuesday Poem: It's got a leaf

It’s
true I
didn’t eat
pears for years
unaware they ripen
from  the  inside  out,
despite Dad who worked
with apples and pears, sold
them in  Europe,  took us on
holidays to orchards and packing
sheds, ordered them, tissue-cupped,
by the wooden box. Now I try to buy 
my pears from Tom or Richard or Sandra:
Winter Nelis – which looks like Nellie but
isn’t – the round hard-looking ones that feel
just picked, and pile them on the spotted plate,
slice them one by one to eat. Winter Nelis – the
one Annie painted for me: a rich red wall behind
the freckled face of it, a goldenish shine to the
skin – the one Tom or Richard or Sandra
rushed over to her from the fruit shop
next door: Look, it’s got a leaf!


Mary McCallum


Such a winter poem! Enjoy (best enjoyed eating a pear). And do check out the Tuesday Poem at the hub – it's by best first book of poetry winner 2014, Marty Smith, and is stunning: Agnus Dei. There are stacks of other Tuesday Poems in the sidebar there too. 

3 comments:

Ben Hur said...

Nice to see one of your poems up, Mary.

I'm afraid I'm a Beurre Bosc fan myself.

Ben Hur said...

Just bought some Winter Nellis from our local Dutch orchardist. Might have to change my mind as they are crunchy and delicious.

Michelle Elvy said...

Oh I love the shape and feel of this poem, much like holding a pear in the hand. Nicely done, Mary!