Reflections on

an Alien Melon

MICHAEL JONES

Don’t chomp it,

trying to prove

that nothing can faze you.

Nibble. Consider

the flesh, the juice,

in light of its glossy

blackness, the fact

that no one around

has died from eating it.

Allow it to take

its place in you

like a theory that

you don’t know

is a theory

until you find

yourself trying

to paraphrase,

trying to discover

its truth in your mouth.