Peeling Oranges

Peeling an orange should not take that long –

Just use the edges of recently trimmed nails, soft

from acts of water to feel around the closed contours

of a bumpy saffron sun; scented, smooth and oily

till a secret crack in the wall

                        perfumes your fingers…

then, it’s a tender act of origami in reverse –

peeling away shapeless parchments – lemonade

mixers & tiny threads of orange veins hiding under nails;

memory of a tangerine afternoon lingering – you…

eating orange prawn-wedges;

            pips, peppering a plate…

Sometimes I forget and sniff my finger-tips –

it all comes back – position of the clock’s 2nd hand,

song that was playing in the background, the acre of sky

grazed by a lethargic sun – the sudden phone call…

sirens, beeping machines, voices –

            suffix… to a numb afternoon.

Peeling oranges never take long now –

It has almost become an act of un-remembrance…

the origami is still the same… just in reverse – you walk

into the kitchen once again as I ensconce tangerine

wedges within a moon & wrap

an orange skin around it!