Beetles and Unknowable Things
by Rachel Tanaka
I squeezed an orchid bud
thinking it would crack open like a pistachio
and bloom between my fingers.
Instead, a beetle scuttled out
with a flattened back and limp legs.
This is what the world must be like for boys.
A scary place
filled with beetles and unknowable things.
The pretty they knew
of whole pomegranates, hung
above their heads like a ruby moon.
They didn’t know splitting it open
meant blood.
After ladling in a handful of gems
into their mouths
the boys chewed and gagged
at the bitter grit of each hidden seed.
What was all this work for?
Their fingertips and lips stained
red and plump with a sour acid.
Their calves knotted and aching
from tippy-toeing
toward the fruit to pluck it.
All for a sweetness they could not taste.