Tuesday, June 03, 2008

green berry tops

may30: salad & arugula flowers

school
letting out
in june
meant
long rides
along the coast
{30 minutes
is eternity
when you
are little}
to
redondo beach.

up the coast
we drove
with the windows
open
in our
junky yellow
station wagon.
how i loved
to stick
my feet out
the window
{when my mom
wasn't looking}
and feel
the wind's
cool
pressure
on my feet
like a kite
in the wind.

may30: strawberries

on the way
home
back down
the coast
as the sun
slowly sank
we'd stop
at
the japanese lady
who sold
strawberries
and other such
things
in a
large white
shack
on the coastal
cliffs
above the sea.

may30: plants

my mom would
come back
to the car
with newspaper-
wrapped
flowers,
green beans,
salad greens,
and
small
wooden containers
with green-tipped
edges
filled
with tiny
strawberries.

may30: radish & kale

i'd eat
the berries
and throw
the green
berry tops
out the windows
at the ocean
as we hurried
home for dinner.

may30: dahlias

those berries
tasted
like the ocean
and the
sweetness
of
summer
beginning.

may30: morning

a taste
i have
never
been able
to find
again.

13 comments:

Anonymous said...

It did not feel like summer at all until I read this. I could actually feel the wind blowing between my toes, and taste the fresh strawberries. You are a wonderful writer, and I love your photos! Oh, and something that reminds me of my childhood summers- climbing the giant oak tree at the neighborhood park and reading all of the engraved initials (Though I never engraved my own, for fear of hurting the tree).

f. pea said...

What great images! I wish I had clearer memories of childhood (though this post reminds me of the time I got hives from eating too many strawberries).

lisa solomon said...

you have to find the japanese lady again :)

great story and pics to go w/
xo

scaredy-cat said...

The stories you tell - both with words and with photos - are so beautiful. Thank you for sharing them!

joe shlichta said...

I remember those strawberries. Damn, those were good. And like you, I have never again tasted anything like them. All strawberries since then have been ruined for me because of the japanese lady. I think her name was Annie.

dee said...

Even though we're all older, i still love the idea of school letting out...and these nostalgic pictures were the perfect compliment to your poem. LOVE THEM!

Anonymous said...

What a beautiful memory. I can almost taste those strawberries after your wonderful description. I agree with Lisa, you'll have to go on a pilgrimage for the Japanese lady and her strawberries. xo lj

johnny said...

I remember too....So red and sweet...absolutely sweet: none of that sour note that all the store bought ones have...almost wild in flavor...And I loved the blood red color of the stains from the juice leeking onto the starched white butcher paper she'd wrap those little boxes in....I'd frame a piece of that stained paper if I had it now....

Anonymous said...

Beautiful, words and polaroids both.
hugs, g xx

wendy said...

oh this memory - BEAUTIFUL
i feel like I was with you.
and those polaroids - beautiful...!!!!
oxox

Unknown said...

you are so lovely. :)

julie said...

Beautiful stories with perfect illustrations :) xx

Molly said...

So many good memories. :)