Sunday 13 May 2007

Ode to the Tomato

The street
drowns in tomatoes:
noon,
summer,
light
breaks
in two
tomato
halves
and the streets
run
with juice.
In December
the tomato
cuts loose
invades
kitchens
takes overlunches
settles
at rest
on sideboards,
with the glasses,
butter dishes,
blue salt-cellars.
It has
its own radiance
a goodly majesty.
Too bad we must
assassinate:
a knife
plunges
into its living pulp,
red
viscera
a fresh,
deep,
inexhaustible
sun
floods the salads
of Chile,
beds cheerfully
with the blonde onion
and to celebrate
the filial essence
of the olive tree
lets itself fall
over its gaping hemispheres,
the pimento
adds
its fragrance,
salt its magnetism-
we have the day`s wedding:
parsley
flaunts
its little flags,
potatoes
thump to a boil,
the roasts
beat
down the door
with their aromas:
it`s time!
let`s go!
and upon
the table
belted by summer,
tomatoes,
stars of the earth,
stars multiplied
and fertile
show off
their convolutions,
canals
and plenitudes
and the abundance
boneless
without husk,
or scale or thorn,
grant us
the festival
of ardent colour
and all-embracing freshness. Pablo Neruda

2 comments:

gwen said...

Julia, I love this whole thing you're doing on Tomatoes. I'm big on tomatoes too! I always have tomatoes in my kitchen all year tound - they really are di vine.. I think it's a crime against tomatoes to put them hot water - then peel their skins off and deseed them. Whenever I see a recipe saying this I always completely ignore that aspect and put every piece, skin and seed in!

The poetry is brilliant and the tomato is truely worthy of it - the tomato brings so many people so much pleasure - it's so versitile etc. my mouth's watering at the very thought of them.

I've never grown a tomato plant before, but so far so good. The one I took home has outgrown its pot and Peter replanted it yesterday! We have no experience - so I'm really hoping we don't kill it!!

I took some photos too. I took a photo of it next to the my Basil plant - that seemed to make sense at the time. Maybe we could some how add these images to your Blog at a later stage?? Or something.
In the meantime, I will look out for anything written on the tomato...and get some recipes to put in your comments...Love Gx

Julia Tester said...

Thanks Gwen, I`ve never had any actual tomatoes from plants I`ve grown so here`s hoping.... love Julai