'To Eat or not to Eat?'
That is the question.
Not cloned,
not sprayed with dangerous chemicals,
not injected with growth hormone,
not sealed in a plastic tray,
and definitely not up to officialdom's dream
of uniform quality standards,
can the bashful carrot really be considered
safe
to eat?
After all,
he was harvested by dirty human hands!
And sold by human beings
from wicker baskets
lined up on a wooden plank
in the public market place.
Yes, in the crowded open street!
A pigeon perched nearby.
And someone coughed.
Coins and notes changed hands.
And people smiled
and laughed.
And no-one shopped with a credit card.
Some had arrived on bicycles.
Others with the bus.
Some had walked
from home
or from their cars parked several blocks away.
There were no supermarket jingles
or buy two get one free
bing bong
sales announcements.
To eat or not to eat?
There is no answer to the question.
We will not chews for you.
But some will try.
But some will try.
Very good. I believe Morrisons sell wonky vegetables in blighty. Orang carrots are thought to have been cultivated in Holland. I would think bashful carrot grew in compact or stoney ground perhaps heavily manured. This caused bashful's roots to fork. They prefer sandy soil. More tales from the potting shed soon. I enjoyed your prose/poem Gwil.
ReplyDeleteThanks Dave for the explanation. It sounds very plausible. I'm looking forward to more tales from your potting shed again his year.
DeleteOh Gwil - it's almost too human to eat. It is so distorted that the distortion has given it a personality. But if you don't eat it it will just rot away and that is worse.
ReplyDeleteI suspect we've just had it in our delicious vegetable and chicken soup. In the interests of harmony I won't be asking.
Delete3 carrots in one. Rather ugly but will taste good. I enjoyed the poem and imagining you writing it.
ReplyDeleteNot at all ugly. Just different. Beauty is after all in the eye of the beholder. Even a carrot deserves a break!
DeleteYes, I believe it had some stones or twigs to work around. Or else, part of it needed a trip to the loo! Or else...
ReplyDeleteThat was my first thought Joanne, it was bursting to go to the loo!
Deletethat's an amazing looking carrot
ReplyDeleteIsn't nature wonderful!
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