My dad was a poetry lover. When I look back now at some of the poems he loved to recite (in his most demonstrative voice), I wonder if they (and he) would pass the “PC” test. I can still quote the final lines of “Gunga Din” by Rudyard Kipling (1865-1936) because I heard them so often from my dad:
Though I’ve belted you and flayed you,
By the livin’ Gawd that made you,
You’re a better man than I am, Gunga Din!
Edna St.Vincent Millay (1892-1950), another of my dad’s favorites, was “a sexually adventurous bisexual…and a morphine addict” (though I would bet my bottom dollar that my dad didn’t know that about her). Her point of view – for many reasons – may not always be well received. Take, for example, her poem “Second Fig”:
Safe upon the solid rock the ugly houses stand:
Come and see my shining palace built upon the sand!
Contradicting a familiar edict, “Don’t burn your candle at both ends,” Millay’s poem “First Fig” is short but memorable:
My candle burns at both ends;
It will not last the night;
But ah, my foes, and oh, my friends—
It gives a lovely light!
My dad even went so far as to write his own take-off on that poem:
My candle burns at neither end,
Heat bent it to a “U,”
So now it has two bottoms.
The whole damn thing’s askew...
T’will light no other’s candle
Nor guide them through the dark.
Tis my own fire department
Which smothered out the spark.
These two fig poems come from an anthology which Millay entitled A Few Figs from Thistles – which must refer to the Bible’s Matthew 7:16: Ye shall know them by their fruits. Do men gather grapes of thorns, or figs of thistles? Was her title meant to be ironic?
Andy’s Corner offers up a poem today too – but it’s not a Millay poem and it has nothing to do with figs. It has a little bit to do with birds. And a lot to do with lies.
Until I started this blog I was oblivious about the amount of fascinating history that accompanies figs. The Smithsonian Magazine has a nice summary of its ancient and religious connections, including this:
The fig tree may have been the first plant cultivated by humans and holds a prominent place in religious history. Some rabbinical scholars even suggest that the tree of knowledge that sent Adam and Eve on the path to perdition may not have been an apple at all, but a fig. The Buddha is said to have gained enlightenment in India under a fig tree.
Since I’m always interested in the gardening and farming and health aspect of fruits and vegetables, I did some quick research and discovered this tidbit: In California 50,000 acres were devoted to fig trees in the 1930’s, but today a mere 9300 acres are devoted to figs. Is that because our tastes are changing and we no longer appreciate figs on the table? If so, that’s a shame, especially given that figs have a lot of health benefits.
It didn’t take long for me to decide we needed a fig tree – but one that could grow in a pot. It was hard to bypass the LSU Purple Fig Tree but I ended up with a Penache Tiger Stripe fig.
Just down the road from our house in Glen Ellen is the spot where the popular “the girl & the fig” restaurant began. “the girl & the fig” has now moved to Sonoma, but “the fig cafe” remains. One of “the fig’s” much-beloved menu items is the Fig & Arugula Salad. We’ve got that recipe for you and we’ve also linked a recipe from SouthernLiving.com for a 2-ingredient delicious appetizer – which combines fig preserves with goat cheese. Even if you don’t think you’re a fig fan, I’ll bet you’ll love both recipes.
girl & the fig's Fig & Arugula Salad
- 1/2 # pancetta, diced
- 12 fresh figs, halved
- 6 bunches baby arugula (I’d suggest a 5 oz pkg would be more than enough)
- 1 c pecans, toasted
- 1 c crumbled goat cheese (preferably Laura Chenel Chèvre)
- 1 1/2 c vinaigrette (recipe follows)
- Pepper
In a small saute pan, saute the pancetta over medium heat until crisp. Set aside the pancetta, reserving the oil it has released. Brush the figs with the pancetta oil. Grill the figs for 45 seconds on each side.
In a stainless steel bowl, toss the arugula, pecans, pancetta and goat cheese with the vinaigrette. Place the salad on chilled plates and surround with grilled figs. Grind pepper over each salad with a pepper mill.
Vinaigrette
Makes 1 1/2 c
- 3 dried Black Mission figs
- 1 cup ruby port (feel free to substitute Merlot or Zinfandel)
- 1/4 c red wine vinegar
- 1/2 T minced shallots
- 1/4 c peanut or safflower oil
- Salt and pepper
Rehydrate the figs in the port until soft. In a saucepan, reduce the port over medium heat to ½ cup.
Puree the figs, port and vinegar in a food processor. Add the shallots and slowly whisk in the oil. Season with salt and pepper.
Thanks for FIGuring this all out and sharing it with us! There are only two opening poetry lines I ever remember – one has to do with the color of a thorny flowering bush and the other with a man living on the East Coast…
Andy here. We think we get the first poem (Roses are red…..), but “a man living on the East Coast” has us stumped. In any case we appreciate your comment.
I once knew a man from Nantucket…
If you don’t know it, you might not want to look it up…fifth grade boys’ joke…
Alan Watts on Kipling:
“Today, Kipling is largely regarded as an imperialist and jingoist whose writings represented British colonialism at its most aggressive peak. Yes and no. Kipling was one of the major channels through which the high culture of India , and the Himalayas flowed back into the West, and persuaded me, for example, through such books as “Kim,” to have more sympathy for Buddhism than Christianity. Kipling was not a Max Muller or an Arthur Waley on the level of fine Oriental scholarship, but he spoke in a subtle and roundabout way to emotions in the solar plexus, the ‘manipura chakra,’ and thus enchanted a small boy with curious, exotic, and far-off marvels that were simply not to be found in the muscular Christianity of the (Low Church) Church of England or the boiled-beef-and-carrots English middle-class way of life.” ––”In My Own Way”
Andy here. We love the passage by Alan Watts you sent, not only for his dazzling prose but because he reveals a side to Kipling that we didn’t know about. Of course, it wouldn’t take much to go beyond my knowledge of Kipling. Thanks for the input.