Tucked under dark green leaves,
laying on their bed of straw,
warm June sunshine
ripens bright red berries.
Sweet, juicy and lucious.
Easy to pick with your fingers.
Delicious to taste with your tongue.
Sweet summer strawberries.
© 2025 Richard Havenga
Photo Location: Kent County - Michigan
Recalling from childhood;
(ten or eleven?)
the thin layer of paraffin
that sealed the jar
of strawberry jam.
Large, luscious berries
that we picked in June fields
while the sun warmed our backs.
That gray disc of wax preserved
the sweet taste of summer,
strawberry jam, spread on warm, buttered toast;
a rare treat for a winter breakfast
in the late nineteen-fifties.
© 2022 Richard Havenga
