Strollermelon
In the summer I roll them from grocer to bus stop, little bonnets
affixed, cooing all the while – cantaloupe, watermelon, honey dew,
casaba, canary, sugar, you name it, they all come home with me,
in pairs or solo, snuggled tightly in blankets and ensuring
dropped-jaw, raised-eyebrow gapes from those who approach.
Don’t they look just like their mother, I ask, and no one ever disagrees.
Everybody is so nice, even the teen-age boys who no longer offer up
their seats. But Damon, who recently purchased new pants to impress
Wanda-I’m-An-Attorney, enjoys whispering secrets to us. Did you
know they’re actually berries? And that some are called fruit,
others, vegetables? They’re not much good for pies, though. I just
call them “Mel,” which is funny because I know that you’re not
supposed to name something you’re going to eat, and really, I do
recognize the difference between sentient beings and plants, but
then candidate Harumph comes to mind, and how do you explain
him and his followers? When cool weather approaches, I turn to
squash. Happy acorn, the elongated, sad butternut, pumpkin. Each
holds a niche in my heart, and I love strolling down the sidewalk
with them, humming tunes, adjusting stems, planning meals.
* * *
“Strollermelon” was first drafted during the August 2016 Tupelo Press 30-30 challenge, and was published in Quiet Letter in April 2017. Thanks to Plain Jane for providing the odd title. One never knows what’ll arise from sponsored titles!
I am still always irrationally tickled by what you created from that silly title. I adore it!
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The title begged for something a little odd. π
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Love your writing, in spite of my status as a plant, lol.
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Ha! Thank you very much!
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very creative!
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Thank you, Nancie. I enjoyed writing this one.
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LOVE it! ππ
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Thank you, Leslie. I don’t know where these ideas come from…
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Nicely done stream-of-consciousness, but my first thought on reading it was, Happy Mother’s Day.
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Ha! I’d not made that connection, but yes, it sort of fits. Thank you!
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Oh, my, after reading your one after this and now this one as I walk back to my days away from the web. Lovely sliding connections and like-unlikeness.
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Iβm so pleased they both resonated, Frank.
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