The Charity of Fruit

By Caroline Adele O'Brien

The closer he comes, the further I drift.

He sits amongst the mold--

A sort of molten lava on a cheeseboard.

Life pours from his ears.

His fingers curl outward.

He hoards potatoes in his clutches.

He melts into the walls,

Becomes trees, then fruit.

His apple is forbidden; he shares lemons.

We knew Him once as King.

Now, he is Jehovah, the Messiah, Himself.

He dances on salt, hovering over a tea-cup.

Religion becomes him.

Charity rocks him to sleep, high in the boughs,

Shifting softly in the sugary pine.

We will never be alone.

Comments: 6

Len Maxwell Feb 2, 2012, 3:06pm UTC

There were a couple of references that confused me, but it was very nicely written overall.

Caroline Adele O'Brien May 22, 2012, 4:25pm UTC

Thank you. Yah, it was a bit unclear, mostly because this came from a writing exercise where I read a line of poetry and then fill in a line. So in the end, my poem is in between the lines of the other person's poem. Then, I take their poem away, leaving only mine and hope it makes sense. So because the poet's mind was wandering, my mind wandered too. It went random places and I'm not certain I totally comprehend it. Which references were they? I could probably revise it and try to make it more clear. Thank you so much for your input!! I really appreciate it :)

Len Maxwell Jun 3, 2012, 2:33pm UTC

My main problem was with the second and third lines of the first stanza. Now that you've explained how you wrote it, I can understand how there might be some confusion.

Caroline Adele O'Brien Jun 13, 2012, 10:07pm UTC

Oh, ok :) Thanks! I'll see if I can try to figure out what I was saying and make it clearer. Lol I think I was saying something about how I've placed him amongst the mold, sort of like he was rotting there because I was neglecting to take notice??? not sure. I'll work on it though. Thank you for the advice :)

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Ann Marcaida Aug 1, 2012, 1:45pm UTC

Quite a shocking poem. The "read back" seems to suggest that god=decay.

Caroline Adele O'Brien Aug 1, 2012, 5:42pm UTC

Wow, thank you!! I didn't know what I was actually saying when I wrote it, but looking back at it, your right. Strange, because I don't really think that way. Maybe I was thinking of God more as death, or the decaying body, rather than life? Weird. Thank you for sharing your interpretation :)

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The Charity of Fruit

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