The ends off of green beans 
and the spiral galaxy of a Winesap Apple.

You could take the ends off the green beans
Throw them like marbles 
or skipping stones 
or flecks of hail we wanted to pretend
were a snow storm in July--
sent out our Christmas lists
in the eye of the thunder storm.
Toss the lists in with the green been
elbows into the belly of the metal bowl
that my brother used to wear
as a helmet when we were soldiers
on the shore of Okinawa 
or astronauts headed to the milky 
face of Saturn in June.
I will pre-heat the oven for the zucchini
and the Brussels sprouts--
and we'll be too impatient to
let them roast-- burn our fingers
on the edges of pans 
with singed oven mitts
my mother burnt when she used to take
the sun out of the oven each morning--
laid it on a towel  on  the table
so as to let it cool 
the whole day long
while all of us wanted to pull
off pieces like monkey bread.
The sun takes too long to roast
and much too long to cool
like Brussels sprouts and
zucchini all dressed in olive oil
and necklaces of sea salt.
I don't think we ever got
to taste the sun-- we always
burnt our tongues.
You peel the apples. Use the peeler
that cuts them like a spiral galaxy
and twirls their skin like
a ribbon dancer-- juice-wet
pirouettes of their cheeks
above the kitchen floor--
eat the peels or throw them 
out of orbit and into
the green bean bowl-- the green
bean bowl the black whole of 
the hail storm of the vegetables--
we caught the hail and kept
it in the freezer so as to not forget
there was almost a snow storm in July.
We played marbles with the others.
I'll make the pie crust if
you're peeling the Winesap apples--
they aren't the best for pies 
but apples weren't made for summer--
I just always miss them-- I know 
I could use peaches but they
don't dance with ribbons-- we want
an apple pie if there is going to be
a snow storm anyway. 
We were never patient enough for a crust
so we can just roast the rings
of Saturn or Winesap apples next
to the Brussels sprouts and the sun--
they'll be too hot to eat anyway.
We can save the skins and the 
funny ends of green beans that 
resemble elf-caps in the 
big metal bowl if we still
want to remember the summer where
it hailed in July after Saturn
left us her apples in June.