Corps de l’article
O red mystery, o berry
of childhood’s branch.
Powder of my school lunchbox,
a fingerdip surprise
for snack time, cherry dust
in a Tupperware nest.
O red iceberg, wobbling
on the tray, perfect
in your thick white bowl,
ridged like a glacial erratic,
mirroring the spoon’s imperfections.
Each spoonful must be pulled
by suction past the lips
to melt and sweeten
on the tongue.
O magical food,
too red to be real.
Parties annexes
Biographical notice
Rhona McAdam's fifth and most recent poetry collection is Cartography (Oolichan, 2006). She spent 2007 in northern Italy, earning a Master's in Food Culture and Communication at Slow Food's University of Gastronomic Sciences. These poems are from her latest manuscript, The Earth's Kitchen. She currently lives in Victoria, is the author of the food and poetry blog Iambic Café, and is on the board of the Slow Food Vancouver Island & Gulf Islands convivium.