Shells. Can a poem be contained?

Oysters, mussels, clams, abalone -- consider their shells. What gifts contained on the half-shell.

Consider the voice as a shell offering fresh, sweetmeats.

Food and words are ever so personal. Indeed aren't they?

Yes, the last blog for 2012 begins & ends with oysters, as in While Eating Oysters.

Tea. How does making tea interweave with a poetry reading?

Leaves, of course.

Add the essential to tea (aka H2O) and leaves unfurl, expand. Tea's essence -- it's gift -- invites you in.

Give voice to a poem and words leave the page, inviting the audience within.

Cranberries. What question do cranberries instill in a poem?

Cranberries inspire an investigation into the tart vs sweet in poetry. Perhaps, inspiring a remedy. In poetry as well as food, I prefer the tart to the overly-sweet. And you?

Black pepper. What does black pepper and a poem offer?

A welcomed surprise to the taste buds. Please remember, a poem is not only seen and heard. It is tasted.

Hold on, I'm thinking. In this way, black pepper is much like the perfect amount of punctuation in a poem. Don't you think? With or without the "?."

Persimmons. How do persimmons inspire a Solstice poem?

Persimmons are like words.
They come when the season is ready.



THIS YEAR NEARLY EXTINGUISHED
Winter Solstice, 2012

Light crackles dark, dark gathers
whispers at the rim.

Season assumes perfect
shape. Pomegranates/persimmons persist

in cerulean bowl among the unseen, calm.
Palpable.

Why now does she recall Grandmother saying,
“More circles than boxes in this world, child.”

Striking a match
what does she now know?

Light/dark inseparable,
one actress plays all roles.

Certainly the ripe curves.
Perhaps, new pages to be turned.

Medjool dates. Why do Medjool dates remind us of blank poetry notebooks.

It's a number-thing. Sitting on the counter are two unopened boxes (one substantial,
the other more-so) of Medjool dates. How to consume?

All over the house in various places, blank notebooks.

Until the blog entry is complete, this is a page of a blank notebook.

Please excuse me. I'm breaking here to grab a date. Will return shortly.

Flatbread. How is crispy flatbread similar to a page of poetry?

Both are canvases, sometimes wide open for interpretation, for play.

Flatbread w/Smoked Salmon

broil flatbread (gently)
smear Creme Fraiche (how can you go wrong?)
add slices of smoked salmon (again, how can you go wrong?)
on the side, an offering of capers/red onion


Do most of your poems arrive before or after a meal? Or during? I'd like to know. Perhaps, with any of these time slots you can't go wrong.

Royal Riviera pears. How does RRp resemble haiku?

Both are huge.

Some say haiku are petite poems, but they are misguided though well-intentioned.

On a personal note, pears (in general) and haiku (specifically) remind me of women. Yes, I realize there is no scientific explanation for this, although when the cat awakes, I will be discuss with him.

Risotto. How does risotto resemble a poem?

In the making, of course.
Risotto requires much stirring. A poem requires much reading. Reading is the classical form of editing. Who would wish lumpy, unappealing words?

In the enjoyment of left-overs.

heat broth to which you add left-over risotto
give a few good twists of black pepper
drizzle olive oil
top with curls of parmesan

Read the poem (again!) you wrote this morning. Out loud, of course.

Green garbanzo beans. What's the bond been GGB and a poem?

Consider the ordinary as anything but. Be it young. Be it mature.

Consider a 2 garbanzo bean salad. Toss young and mature beans with olive oil, splash balsamic, twists of pepper, tomatoes, nuts (but which kind?), a snip of fresh herb.
Perhaps add cooked chicken. Perhaps not. The same goes for shrimp.

Where did you place the poem to accommodate?

Eggs. How is cracking eggs emblematic of a poem.

One word? Enjambment.
Two words: Delicious enjambment.

As in eggs, poems should have a practical yet fragile exterior and a nutritious inside.

Mixed fresh herbs. What is the equivalent in a poem?

Surprise & delight for the unexpected. Yet, this unexpected is known. Is familiar. Common as the letters in an alphabet.

Soups. Are there more soups made on a winter's night than poems created?

First, when is a dish a soup and not a stew?
When is a written piece a draft? When, a poem?

It all goes into the pot and what is shared is either soup or stew and always the makings of a poem.

Simple tomato sauce. Can a simple tomato sauce be a poem?

Minimalist Epic: On the addition of almonds to a winter tomato sauce

Melt butter
add chopped tomatoes (1-2) as in those dark red/green ones from Trader Joe's
black pepper
lemon thyme
pitted black olives
almonds

heat. serve over spinach pasta

yes, almonds

yes, the winter solstice poem will come if meals be colorful

Dried fruits. What do dried fruits share with poems?

With dried fruits, concentration of flavor.
With poems, compression of language.

An auditory/edible memory of the ripe. Be it known, memory is always in season.

Shortbread. How is shortbread shorthand for a poem?

In two words -- buttery & sweet. Some poems are like that. There is sweetness in the bitter, even in the minimal as readily as shorthand to a poem's gesture.