Ode to My Fingernails.
At a picnic in the park
You dive into the orange peel with abandon
Pulling back that thick skin
To reveal the tender
Sweet delicacy underneath.
Submerging between wedges
To separate bite-sized juiciness,
You carry your history
In the fragrance tucked between
My skin and your toughness.
Working at home
My misguided hammer blow,
The full force of hardened steel,
Bounces off you.
You willingly sacrifice yourself
For the finger below.
And this morning’s gardening
Buries itself deep underneath you.
The warm soil leaving
Your protruding tips dark and muddy.
But now
Being buffed and trimmed
At the salon,
The smooth manicurist’s hands
Restore you.
You emerge from me with
Your off-white lunula,
Each a crescent moon,
Foreshadowing
More of you to come.
Meeting the world
And shaking hands
You lead the way.
Your cleanliness reaching out first,
Helping me overcome my shyness
With your buffered and shiny
Manicured shell.
Fingernails,
you’re once again,
Slick and clean and trimmed.
Leading me
With your confidence,
Ready for whatever
The day may bring.
To make the most of your week at Rancho La Puerta, you’re encouraged to start with cleansing treatments at the beginning of the week, continue mid-week with treatments that relax and restore, and schedule treatments that energize during the last day or two of your visit. You can read more about our world class salon offerings here. You can read poetry by our guests here.
