Citrus and Sweethearts!
Exploring why we’re drawn to love poems, how love exists beyond romance, and the quiet beauty of everyday moments.
Why are we so attracted to love poems anyway?
It’s like asking me why my favorite songs are She Will be Loved by Maroon 5 and Iris by the Goo Goo Dolls. It’s just there, and it has been for as long as I can remember.
We tend to think that love comes around only in February. Get it while you can. Then compare its abundance to the person next to you. In truth, love looks a lot like your younger sister who just turned ten a month ago, it looks like the walk home from a night out with your friends that you probably won’t remember, going through your pictures the next day, the shot book pages, learning something new about yourself, smile lines from an unexpected compliment, your three-year-old tattoo, & taking the long way home.
Love does not have to be some drastic thing, reserved for those bitten by some “love bug.” It can be as simple as sharing moments of companionship, experiencing youth together, & stirring around in moments that can’t seem to be put against a timeline.
With Valentine’s Day steadily approaching, I can’t stop thinking about Gary Soto’s “Oranges.” It’s such a soft, though lengthy, start to grasping this idea of love embedded into poetry and what we can make out of our mundanes.
The poem opens with splashes of color against this white, wintery December background; yellow porchlight against the gray and pale winter, the girl’s face bright with rouge, and the oranges that are there though not made their appearance yet–their color for the moment is hidden. How vibrant! That love prevails even in our pockets for its rightful moment!!
“And when she lifted a chocolate that cost a dime, I didn’t say anything. I took the nickel from my pocket, then an orange, and set them quietly on the counter. When I looked up, the lady’s eyes met mine, and held them, knowing very well what it was all about.”
Convince me that very moment is not love. Convince me that this wordless exchange of holding eye contact, of knowing, down to one’s heart matter and sparing them a moment of embarrassment out of kindness, is not filled in the colors of love. Love is a look. Eyes holding one another like a pair of hands in reconciliation.
The poem ends as the two young lovers return to that world of the fog as they leave the store–back into that gray, pale December world… but then the final orange makes its appearance, and when it does, it transforms everything! This final orange, patient in his pocket, is rich in metaphorical possibility–it’s fiery, it's dangerous, it’s warm, it’s inviting, it’s bright! Love bleeds in these meanings, and Soto invites us to decipher what it might mean to peel back an orange, revealing the quiet beauty in everyday moments often dismissed as “mundane” or “insignificant.” Challenge yourself to seek them out, and you’ll find joy in the smallest, most unexpected places.
If you’ve ever measured your share of love against others, take a moment to look around and savor what is already there. We’ve all heard it a hundred times: “It’s the little things that matter,” but that simple statement holds such a sincere truth in itself. Though love can be expressed through widely grand gestures and gifted bouquets on Valentine’s Day, do not overlook the wildflowers you see on the side of the road or the comforting “I love you” text from your mom. Just like the orange in the poem burned bright against the gray, even the biggest fires start with a single flame—find yours today.
I don’t know if you’re experiencing galentines or valentines or choosing not to put a label on it, but I do know one simple truth: you are the lovebug that bites into every good thing around you. & that alone is a bite worth taking.
And we will see you next week!
This was a lovely read🍊