Applecore Mandala

APPLECORE MANDALA

Slicing a midsize New Zealand green,
note the hues of its sheened and high glossed skin,
a glaze which on examination yields
the barely perceptible trace of fine lacquered wax.
Green--a color subtler than lime, vibrant
as the chartreuse underbelly of an orchid
or the tiny peridot feet of mosses just being born.

A study of surfaces reveals
lemon feathered freckles
and watercolor deepenings
where the crown curves in.

The apple is beautiful, perfect.
A wash of soft golds on its left side,
muted into a delicate camouflage,
concealing mysteries.

You roll her on her side, stem
facing west. How unusual, you think,
not to conform to the standard norm
of slicing apples from above. But
something impels you on, coaxes
the knife to enter at the jeweled

center of life at 10 o'clock
on an April Monday, the kitchen
window full of sun and outside
a mourning dove coos.
This is not irrelevant. It all
belongs to this perfect day
of you and the apple and
the song of apples
forming in your heart.

What you see is dazzling, and
at that instant you know you are
witnessing the everything
of the universe
conflating splendidly in one
small drop of time
we choose to call now. You
hold up the central slice,

a piece no wider than a sheet
of papyrus.

Up to the slant of sun.
Marveling.
Marveling.
Isn't it marvelous the way
the universe reveals herself,

her secret belly up to the lion sun,
relishing her each intricate design,
articulating
patterns and symbols,

the breathtaking artistry of
shape, fragrance, texture, sketches
of India--an ivory hibiscus with
five seeds, five essences. Glory.
Glory. And your heart is an apple,
beating glory. Look into that

five-seeded star. See the soft-
furred flower of a young sand dollar
echoed back. See the apple blossom
where bloom became the knowing gift
she is, now,

a spectacular shimmering presence in your hand.

In your hand. You are containing mysteries
at core, at the bright green center inside
the heart
of all things, you've become a deep-flamed
being fully formed,

a five-fingered circle,
a
star.