the apple 2 my eye
sunsets like no other
Angel lived in an apple tree. Angel purposefully lived on the lowermost branch so that he could always look up and see every single ruby that was growing. He loved his fruit. He loved them so much, he wouldn’t even dare to eat them. He just liked to look at them.
Angel wasn’t always like this. He used to cook up the apples in every single way imaginable. On a sandwich, in a pie, as a snack, as a juice, you name it. But Angel’s tree wasn’t the only one in the grove. There were coconut trees, orange trees, lemon trees, you name it. And the unfortunate reality is that not everyone liked Angel’s apple tree. Some preferred the other fruits. Angel became self-conscious. He wanted to prove to the others that the apple tree was the best tree. He stopped eating them and started to tend to them. To shepherd them. To facilitate them. To breed them. Angel made sure every fruit that came from his tree was up to standard in height, weight, circumference, and color. Substance didn’t matter because people only stopped by to look anyways.
In a season, Angel reached both his highest peak and his lowest valley. At their prime, all the apples looked perfect. But Angel could not stop the laws of nature. His first apple began to blemish. Then it was another one. Then they started to change colors. Worm infested. Until they could no longer hold on and fell to the depths of bedrock. One by one, they all fell off, until there was nothing left.
Angel didn’t understand why there were some who did not like what Angel had to offer. It hurt his pride. He scrambled. He would not accept defeat. This apple tree was his home and he would not leave it behind. He went to the floor to examine his failures. Apples everywhere cracked open and bleeding out. Juices ran the streets sweet. Filled the air with a tart smell. Nostalgic.
Angel reached inside one that split perfectly in half revealing the core. The outer shell had become soft, but the center was strong. The flesh was prime. Angel broke a piece off and took a bite. His face flushed back with color. With life. The taste. The unforgettable taste. How could he not? His livelihood. His soul. Memories were no longer sour, but oh so sweet. They were no longer embarrassing, but now the shine in his light.
He moved. Not to another tree. Not to the top, but the dead center. Where he could be as close as possible to every single apple in the tree. Angel realized his life was best lived when he participated in his environment. The laws of nature do not stop for anyone. So you must live by them. Fruits come and go, but soon enough, the seeds that fall into the soil have grown into trees of their own. Because in the end, it doesn’t matter what the apple looks like. What matters is how it tastes. For it to be eaten is for its purpose to be fulfilled. To nourish and give life. We are not connected because we look similar or were raised in the same neighborhood. We are connected by our experiences with each other and how we have participated in each other's lives. Some apples are picked off and some fall off, but what matters is that they are all once connected to the same root.
A parable about gentrification in Los Angeles. Unfortunately, in the capitalistic society we live in, it is inevitable. Excuse my hopelessness, but no matter how long our efforts may last, eventually, there will be a time to go. Everyone has a price. But for LA, it never has been about the looks. Because when it was, that is when the city failed us the most. It is about the people and the experiences that connect us together.
You cannot be passive. You have to be a participant. Los Angeles is often looked at as shallow. Caring about what the city looks like more than the people itself. But the truth is outside of Hollywood, the cameras, and the hype. There are communities of people connected by stories and experiences. The grove is filled with trees of all different kinds of fruit. Just like apple seeds fall, so will others. Los Angeles is a melting pot that adapts over generations.
Written while listening to Kendrick Lamar’s “To Pimp A Butterfly”.
Will most definitely be craving an apple.
