at the ripe age of

a blackberry,

in the suite of time before

it is ripe for plucking,

turns bright pink,

so red and beautiful some people believe

for this short period of time

that it could almost be a

raspberry, thinking

tart rouge floral undertones would invade the walls of their mouths

when their teeth finally burst its plump membranous vesicles. how delicious, how delicious, it would be, these people thought.

but no amount of raspberry-ness could stay in time,

and instead, they got

seedy, over sweet

almost bitter

over-abundant,

blackberry.