Orange is the basis of communication
with the forgotten who still grow hair
from their ears or noses. It is a gift
traditionally given in a counterclockwise
and clockwise direction. When I enter
your home after many decades
of digging holes with pencils,
I will bear in one hand an orange,
and hold my other hand behind my back.
I will kneel and roll the orange to your feet.
When I stand and present my back to you,
you may tie my hands with necklaces
made from egg cowries or send me off
in a wooden canoe across the ocean
in search of sandpipers or an albatross.
I don’t expect interest in return
just an orange meal with many seeds in our teeth.
Photo By: Bernard Dupont
