Eating Plums

Watching my 6 month old son
eat pureed plums for the first time
is a study in how someone
can like and dislike something
simultaneously.

Unlike applesauce
each time I spoon plum
he holds his mouth open
willing to try a taste
again and again.
Then
the one-eyed Popeye squint.
And then
the wonder of the aftertaste.

I suppose I have a lot to learn from my son
about trying new things.
Maybe it’s a bit like
eating plums for the first time,
hanging in there when you taste tart
but waiting for the sweetness
that you seem to recall
occasionally has the tendency
to kick in.