Some days I wish I were a walnut
musings on the simplicity of life
Some days I wish I were a walnut,
And thought my shell to be the extent of the world.
I'd know every crevasse, every wrinkle of my shell
With the grooves of my body, and be content at the snugness of my existence.
My biggest dream would be to land onto a sunny patch of grass.
My biggest foe would be a squirrel, starved and weary after the long winter.
Some days I wish I were a walnut. A simple walnut in a bitter green shell.
Maybe the farmer's frugal wife finds me early in the spring.
Muttering: "Waste none.."
She would throw me in a copper pot to turn me into jam.
Maybe the farmer himself, flashing the silver blade, would pry out my tender flesh with the sharp tip of the pocket knife.
Doing so would remind him of his first spring in the mountains.
Of the morning when his father peeled a walnut, just like he did now, and fed him tender, sweet meat that smelled of waking earth.
Some days I wish I were a walnut.
Falling with a thud, rolling away from the tree, to a where a black bird can find me.
It would carry me away, past the farm and the forest, beyond the tree line, to where the mountain tops touch the sky.
It would place me next to the featherless hatchlings inside the weathered nest, made of twigs and rabbit fur.
The hatchlings would grow and tussle, pushing me out through the hole in the foundation of the nest.
Some days I wish I were a walnut, with only the purpose of becoming a tree.
About the Creator
Salomé Saffiri
Writing - is my purpose. I feel elated when my thoughts assume shapes, and turn into Timberwolves, running through the snowbound planes of fresh paper, leaving the black ink of their paw prints behind.
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Comments (24)
Congrats on Top Story!!
Well written and congratulations on Top Story!
Great, now I want to be a nut. Top Story? Yup! 🏅
After reading this, I wish I was a walnut, too! Loved your use of descriptive language in this piece.
It's a pretty big purpose!
That's amazing. Words can't describe it. You have to feel it. So impressive.
I am amazed how 'walnut' is used to define the whole life and emotion.
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Some nice thoughts and words
Congrats on Top Story!🥳
Wow
I loved this when I read it and it has stayed with me. There is something so elementally beautiful and poignant in your writing. Happy to be a new subscriber!
Artful anthropomorphism!
I agree, and some days, I wish I were a Walnut too. Brilliantly written.
Back to say congratulations on your Top Story! 🎉💖🎊🎉💖🎊
What a lovely lyrical piece! Simply stunning!
This is so beautiful. I especially love the ending. Well done and congrats on the TS.
I really loved this poem!! Such an original and liberating piece! Congrats on top story.
Really love this piece! Who knew how much walnuts can travel, and be used for... Wonderful writing and a great concept. Thanks for sharing! :)
This felt so liberating! Now I wish I was a walnut too. Also, I had no idea walnuts can be made in jam! Loved your poem!
What a lovely poem! I found this to be a really interesting viewpoint!
I could be bounded in a nutshell and count myself a king of infinite space … Hamlet. This is a wonderful, multilayered poem, Salome! You have taken such a simple thing as a walnut, and filled its story with potentiality: a squirrel’s lunch, a memory marker from a farmer’s childhood, the flooring of a raven’s nest or the thick spreading branches of a future tree. Really beautiful writing!
This is absolutely stunning. I love the detail and care you've put into taking us through each stage of a walnut's existence. Beautifully done. 💓
Nice poem! I really liked the perspective of this!