Oranges
by Amie Campbell
Art by Eileen Dirks
My father always told me Oranges are good for you They protect you from invaders And once you peel off all the tough outsides Some of them can be sweet
Many an orange would I start to peel Only to have its juices sting my cuticles You need more practice My father would say
Some oranges have skin so thick I couldn’t even get my nails through it You must make your fingers strong He’d tell me
A few times I got the peel off But the juice of the orange was sour And it made my stomach turn You will build up a tolerance My father encouraged
I tried for many years But I never could learn to love the oranges
Then one day You handed me this soft pink ball With delicate fuzzy skin And told me to take a bite No peeling required
As I sunk my teeth in The sweetness exploded into my mouth I could not contain myself As I joyously devoured it all
And as I stood there Smiling for the first time in years Stomach finally satisfied Juice running down my chin
You smiled back and said Oranges are not the only fruit.
Eileen Dirks, I Like When You Called Me Whimsical, Oil on Canvas
