Some bitter with the sweet
Nearly too intense to eat
It keeps you on your feet
And life is like that
Brisk, acidic, and sharp
Like pricking fingers on a harp
Their sweat falls on the tarp
And life is like that
Pale, ripe, and yellow
Some say, “what a fellow
He is much too mellow.”
And life is like that
Lemon is a freeform exercise that came about because I wanted to try to force myself to write a poem. I didn’t have any subject matter to start with, but earlier in the day I listened to Lemon by Led Zeppelin, and that is where the title and inspiration eventually did come from. There’s not much of a deeper meaning in Lemon except for maybe the last bit “What a fellow, he is much too mellow.” That speaks to how I’ve sometimes felt like people are complimenting me on doing a good job or being a good man, but because I tend to stand in the background, that somehow makes me not enough to warrant any further responsibility or need to have my insight/opinion heard.