The taste of fresh shelled walnuts

East of town along a gravel road

next to a barbed wire fence

a large walnut tree grew

On a day ripe for playing

Mom piled her kids in a ‘57’ DeSoto

to pay a visit to a lonely tree

We gathered up free walnuts

in a burlap bag from weeds

in the ditch under the tree

When we got home

I was given a hammer to harvest

walnut meat on the back porch

Mom gave me hell

when she caught me

eating what I shelled

I don’t know the why

of so many

angry things I did

But when she went inside

I cracked the concrete edge

of the porch with the hammer

Mom made an angry accusation

while I made my denial

to the talking end of a willow stick

The sting and cut of willow are gone

but I still can taste fresh shelled walnuts

on the back porch with a hammer in the sun

1-7-20