From blossoms come
this brown paper bag of peaches
we bought from the boy
at the bend in the road where we turned toward
signs painted Peaches.
From laden boughs, from hands,
from sweet fellowship in the bins,
comes nectar at the roadside, succulent
peaches we devour, dusky skins and all,
comes the familiar dust of summer, dust we eat.
Oh, to take what we love inside,
to carry within us an orchard, to eat
not only the skin, but the shade,
not only the sugar, but the days, to hold
the fruit in our hands, adore it, then bite into
the round jubilance of peach.
There are days we live
as if death were nowhere
in the background; from joy
to joy to joy, from wing to wing,
from blossom to blossom, to
impossible blossom, to sweet impossible blossom.
~ Li-Young Lee, "From Blossoms" from Rose, copyright 1986
16 comments:
oh yes!
this juicy bit of poetry
...NOW it is summer:)
glad thanks for this
peachy share,
Jennifer
How lovely...
Thank you for sharing these beautiful poems with me, who would not find them, otherwise. (-blushing- Not being a reader of poetry...)
"Partners do not need to hold on tightly,
because they move confidently in the same pattern,
intricate but gay and swift and free."
~Anne Morrow Lindberg
Not just sometimes, i wish we could live forever in joy in the moment, remembering only that we are alive
This brings memories of my younger days walking barefoot in the warm dirt of summer, picking fresh fruit off the tree, polishing it on my shirt, and savoring. Lovely!
I grew up in Washington State, and this reminds me of the peaches, apricots and cherries we would pick each summer.
Great poem to accompany your photo.
Sweet....
I like to eat ripe peaches in the shower...
xo
Oh that is a beautiful poem. Thank you so much for your Sunday poems, Relyn, I always look forward to the treasures you share with us.
Delicious post! The photo is so inviting and combined with the lovely poem they evoke fabulous memories and joy of summer. Thank you!
Reylyn,
Thank you for sharing this lovely poem and the accompanying photograph, yum!
It made me think of earlier this year, when I was on a road trip with my daughter. We stopped at a road side stand where a young boy was selling cherries. He asked us in the sweetest little voice if we would like to taste them first, well of course...They were so fresh and irresistible that we purchased a bag to munch on as we drove merrily on. Such a great memory of our travels.
Hi, I made my way to your blog via Flickr.
I have a blog but am an artist and paint huge canvases of flowers. I usually take all my own images for my paintings but have been requested to paint some white hydrangeas for someone recently and as they are out of season, wondered if you would mind me using your beautiful hydrangea image on your Flickr page.
You can contact me at:
leecarolineart@gmail.com
or leave a message on my blog. You can see my artwork on my "paintings" page on my blog.
Lee ☺
Peaches do have memories for me as well . . . my grandparents had big old peach trees. Nothing like the sweetness of a fresh peach offered with love!
Oh, how I love the sweet taste of a fresh peach. Your post makes me want to go buy some right now. And the photograph is beautiful. Here's to a new week of summer bliss. I hope you're enjoying yours!
Love it.
Love peaches too.
Beautiful! That last stanza really strikes a chord with me.
This weekend we are picking peaches at an orchard, something I haven't done with family since the late 60's. Time to introduce the grandchild to the joys of fresh produce!
Beautiful....
I bought a bag of peaches today too!
YUM.
xo jj
I always think these poems must be by you, because they see just what you'd write!
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