How to Choose a Cantaloupe
Feb 10 2024
I saw the disappointment
as she held it to her nose
inhaled deeply
replaced it on the shelf.
Kept picking up and putting down,
eyeing, sniffing, squeezing
the brightly coloured fruit
shipped out of season.
Even more picky than me.
And I could tell
she was a good shopper,
as women of a certain age tend to be.
Could have taught home economics.
Is properly frugal.
Abhors wasting food.
Knows her fresh produce
stone fruit
how to choose a cantaloupe.
Not the men, though,
racing down the aisles
and barely looking up.
Grabbing the first thing they see
and tossing it off-handedly
into their wonky-wheeled cart,
careering through turns
like a demolition derby
in a stripped-down Dodge.
If only
cherry blossoms
orange zest
purple-fleshed plums.
Fragrant
and freshly picked,
the spritz of acid spray.
Sweet sticky juice
running down my chin.
But this is industrial fruit,
cardboard
and odourless.
Convenient.
Year round.
Picked green.
And shipped by truck
across a continent,
just stopping for smoke breaks
and bad food.
She left
with a mostly empty cart,
wheeling quickly past
the canned fruit
packaged goods
flash-frozen food.
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