whole reed-baskets full
uncountable peppers

wagon red, Kelly green, lemon yellow
mandarin orange, seed-pregnant

vested in limy leaves impossible
to snap off each crevasse-skinned

bulbous-shaped fruit for a taste dare:
keep a water cracker rescue near

for tame ones, raw onion to save
your tongue for the wildest burns

each first cracked-half bursts
in the shower of the kitchen sink

sudden coughs huh, huh, surprise
your throat fire-lined, vision blurred,

seeds spew like confetti, spiral
down the drain, lost garden magic