April 25, 2011

National Poetry Month: Tomato


Nope, I don't eat tomatoes, but I was captivated by this poem.

In honor of National Poetry Month, because we can never have enough good poetry in the world.


 Tomato

     Tomato in my salad bowl
     Is all there is.
     Big as a watermelon,
big as the art,
big as my mind.
     Glistening, shining, with
time's still rush,
     We're locked together
for this part of eternity,
     Tomato and me.

     I feel taken into
the cherry roundness,
     orange redness,
it's fact of existing.
     I've never known
a tomato
quite like this.

     This could go on a long time,
     It's so compelling.
     I'm becoming a tomato,
     Tomato me.
     Who'll blink first, me or tomato?

     It is said that
"Freedom is not needing to know what comes next."

     I eat it.

     Then,
I notice a leaf of lettuce.

--Donald Rothberg

Image by Muffet, at Flickr, used under a Creative Commons License.

1 comment:

  1. I just found myself on your blog roll! I'm honored to be included AND I love this tomato poem. The last line just cracked me up.
    From one fellow voyager to another,
    Bon Voyage!
    Luann Udell

    ReplyDelete