Ode to the Onion 

Eat me 
Then defeat me. 

A thirst for life  
even on its cutting board casket  
causes line cooks to cry  
while they slice through subtle sweetness  
on the path  
to Umami.  

Another bulb 
another beheading 
changes the prep cook  
makes them aware  
that onions  
both green-faced and ghost-faced  
are relentless little Rasputins 
waging war on the eyes  
before during and after death.  

For cooks 
to become chefs  
they must charm the  
cobra bulb  
stop its spitting  
by freezing and fanning 
by replacing the dark hangman’s hood  
with clear goggles. 
This will not stop tears 
But it will change their cause. 
Sulphur sting flows into 
subtle sweetness 
when you reach

Umami.  

–David O’Boyle writes a tanka of poems. Check em’ out.