Saturday, September 3rd 10:45 am
I brought my fruit to work today. I plan on eating it. I’m a lifeguard and I work at a pool, well actually about 5 different pools. I’m working at the pool in the neighborhood I used to live in. It is nostalgic even though the pool has been remodeled since I lived here. I am so tired of my job. I have to be at the pool from 10:30am to 10pm. I didn’t cut my fruit before I brought it so I bought a paring knife to work. I don’t know how legal that is but I’m sure it will be ok. The fruit has a small soft spot on it and maybe it will get bigger by the time I eat it. I don’t like when fruit starts to get bad and it gets all soft and brown and mealy it makes me sad. The fruit was so perfect and ripe at some point but it was forgotten and now it is left to sit and rot until it meets the end. Thankfully most of my Kiwi is okay.
Saturday, September 3rd 4:00pm
I just cut open my kiwi and now I’m eating it. It is alright. I prefer regular green kiwis. It makes the tip of my tongue tingle like the carbonation in soda. I dropped a piece of it on my keyboard, but it’s okay because my Chromebook is reaching the end of its life anyway. It’s sluggishness is getting bothersome. My manager has been crying since 12 after she took a phone call. I hope she’s ok. I don’t want to start questioning her if she’s going through it. She’s trying to hide her sadness but it isn’t really working. It’s the kind of sadness that you can’t hide. Just like a kiwi can’t hide the rotting flesh beneath its skin. Kiwi seeds look like frog eggs. They have a clear jelly flesh coating like a frog egg. I don’t think they taste like frog eggs but then again I’ve never eaten a frog egg.
September 8, 2022 — 2:04 PM
Quite a deep and interesting analysis on this kiwi, Maggie! Truly wonderful! Although I would like to ask, could the Kiwi perhaps be the reason your manager began to cry on the phone? What if she was faking to be on the phone, hiding away from the view of the Kiwi. In fact, it was the last thing that lady saw before the ‘accident’ several years before. She has been permanently traumatized by Kiwis and you happened to bring these horrid memories back to her. Sadly, she likely never told you about this fear of kiwis as she felt embarrassed to do so, she felt you and many others would be disgusted.
September 14, 2022 — 1:23 PM
Thank you for this comment 1007151!
September 8, 2022 — 2:51 PM
“The fruit was so perfect and ripe at some point but it was forgotten and now it is left to sit and rot until it meets the end.”
The contrast in tones really flow together nicely. Your feelings at the start of the sentence versus the end are clear and compelling.
September 14, 2022 — 1:25 PM
Thanks 🙂
September 9, 2022 — 11:46 AM
The final sentence, “I don’t think they taste like frog eggs but then again I’ve never eaten a frog egg,” is immensely intriguing to me. Are there people out there who would eat frog eggs? Would you ever consider eating a frog egg? But now that you’ve compared the seeds of a Kiwi to a frog egg, I’m somewhat interested in seeing the comparison myself!
September 14, 2022 — 1:26 PM
Thank you Sarah! I don’t think that I would eat a frog egg because I don’t like frogs.
September 13, 2022 — 4:36 PM
This is a great slice of life — a day at one of your pools. I love how your mind switches from describing the kiwi to the world around you, such as the disappointing job, your manager’s upsetting phone call, and the disappointing taste of the golden kiwi. So many good specifics. It’s cool that you wait until towards the end to connect the kiwi with your outside world: “She’s trying to hide her sadness but it isn’t really working. It’s the kind of sadness that you can’t hide. Just like a kiwi can’t hide the rotting flesh beneath its skin.”
September 14, 2022 — 1:27 PM
Thank you Mr. Stephens! Your feedback was insightful.