Winter Fruit

[fyreharper]

Pass by the out-of-season blackberries, attractive to the eye
but lacking sweetness, lacking depth -
This is the season of apples, pears,
Luminescent kiwis in their coats of fur,
Tangerine, persimmon, cranberry,
the last of the quinces.
Pomegranate displays rich jewels in the firelight;
it boasts of its conquest, as winter comes again
and again.
In the chill air, oranges sweeten -
a cheery bulge in the toe of a stocking,
a round firm self-contained package to wrap your fingers around,
bright sunshine bursting on your tongue in the cold dark.