We all display behaviours that set us apart, identify us. Oddities and quirks that have become part of our way of operating- our habits. They are often referred to as idiosyncrasies (distinctive individual behaviours).
We frequently perform them unconsciously. It is often the observations of others that draw attention to our strange and wonderful ways. Some quirks are quite odd such as the behaviour of the character, Robert Barone in the TV series 'Everybody Loves Raymond' who would touch his chin with snacks before placing them in his mouth. Some quirky behaviours are driven by superstition such as one I recall from my childhood when we were told never to step on cracks in the concrete for such action would surely break your Grandmother's back-'Don't step on a crack or you'll break your grandmother's back.' We were impressionable enough to comply with this horrifying edict. Some of our quirks are driven by order and repetition of certain actions.
So this week I wrote a poem about one of my very own quirks. My wife, Vicki pointed it out to me some time ago. It concerns my approach to eating biscuits, cookies, cakes and slices. I have to own it, I'm afraid. It's not too alarming. It might be something you do as well. We are funny cattle, we humans...
Maybe there's a poem in one of your quirky behaviours...
Just A Smidge
I shall break off a
tiny piece of this biscuit
Enough to tantalize and tease tastebuds
For something this
sweet and so delicious
Requires delicate nibbles at the very edge
Just to make it last
a little longer.
This taste tempting
treat
Must be eaten slowly,
And oh so deliberately.
No pig slice for me
-I cannot be greedy
So it’s a smidge
A tiny morsel
Then nibble,
Nibble, nibble
Nibble, nibble
All the way
To the last,
Delicious
Crumb
Cru.
©Alan j Wright
*It is Poetry Friday and our host this week is Denise Krebs. Denise shares a poem originating from a single word and outlines the process she followed to tease out the ideas contributing to her final poetic creation.
I love your whole cookie poem, Alan, down to the last cru. Yes, that is a quirk I've seen a lot. My husband, for instance, can eat whole swaths of cake right out of the serving dish. I love "No pig slice for me", and I like how you explain at the beginning that explains why you have this quirk: "something this sweet and so delicious / Requires delicate nibbles" Well done!
ReplyDeleteThank you Denise. Your husband sounds like a committed cake fan. Glad the poem struck such a chord.
DeleteFun poem Alan, love the physical pacing of your poem, and the descending lines as the poem moves towards the bottom, it adds , and reenforces its deliciousness, thsnks! 😋
ReplyDeleteThank you for your keen response and observation Michelle. Much appreciated.
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ReplyDeleteAlan, your way of eating the biscuit may be the more sensible way. The taste buds start salivating and the experience lasts. "For something this sweet and so delicious/Requires delicate nibbles at the very edge/Just to make it last a little longer." I had to laugh at this line, "No pig slice for me." Last night, I make my cookies (one of my loves) and when I went to the pumpkin-shaped basket, all the cookies were gone. Maybe there were a lot of pig slicers enjoying the treats.
Carol, you make my idiosyncratic behaviour sound quite legitimate with your explanation. Glad you got a laugh from my words. So, who stole the cookies from the cookie jar?
DeleteI like the way the 'smidge', 'morsel', & 'nibble' tell all the tale, Alan. It's fun to read of your quirk. I think mine must be that everything on my plate must end together, one bite at a time.
ReplyDeleteThey are great words Linda, deserving of inclusion. I like your little quirk. I think I share that one with you...
DeleteWonderful, Alan. I love the way the poem disappears along with the biscuit & gives the reader a simultaneous experience.
ReplyDeleteThank you Susan. I like the fact you noted the simultaneous experience.
DeleteAnd a good way to eat, if I say so myself! Who wants to eat it down quickly and shorten the experience? Thanks for this close look... I enjoyed it!
ReplyDeleteSounds like you readily approve of my actions here Karen. You make a most valid point about eating slowly in order to prolong the experience -a slow sweet surrender...
DeleteI think that's the best way to eat a biscuit and a perfect shaped poem to describe it. I need to slow down. I have trouble eating a scone or muffin slowly but I think it's a worthy habit to work on.
ReplyDeleteJanice, it's good to know there are potential fellow members of nibblers united. Good luck with your slow eating plan. Glad my poem struck a pleasing note.
DeleteWhat a fun topic to tackle with poetry. I love how you've played with form to echo the behaviour you're describing. It looks like people fall into two camps on this - the nibblers and not-nibblers. (I waver between the two, myself).
ReplyDeleteThank you Elisabeth for your acute observations. Much appreciated.
DeleteI love the way your lines disappear as the cookie (biscuit) does.
ReplyDeleteThanks Ruth. The idea formulated as I was rewriting the poem. It seemed to make sense in this instance.
DeleteYou have way more discipline that I do! I'm more of a gobbler than a nibbler!
ReplyDeleteThere appears to be many positions on the biscuit eating continuum Mary Lee. Nibblers. gobblers, munchers and the like...
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