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Image:2 My quickie pastel sketch of a ladies finger (or I would call it Green okra) on an A4 size dark drawing paper done a few minutes ago
An okra with hues of red
Unique, rarely exchanged in trade
Made its presence quite recently
Cultivated rightly as a hobby
But seriously the green kind
Ordinary, thrives as a vege in Eastern cuisine
But ‘ladies fingers’ it was long known
Who in their right mind had such named
Never to have seen slender hands?
Condemned not anywhere as near
Rough, slimy rather vaguely queer
Praise be, 'Green okra' is more acceptable
Let’s us not involve ourselves in squabbles
Ladies fingers as a name is not in vogue
More pleasant Green okra is now invoked
Written for Poets United Vice Versa #11 with prompts comprising antonyms Unique/Ordinary and Condemn/Praise and Claudia's OpenLinkNights week #57 at d"Verse
i like okra ours was always green, had never seen the red, interesting...nice art yourself man, always like to see your art...
ReplyDeleteHank, I had not realized you were a visual artist too! Very nice pastel sketch. I have never seen okra with shades of red, but do love the 'ordinary' green variety when it is cooked RIGHT!
ReplyDeleteA nice contribution!
unfortunately we don't have it over here..maybe not warm enough to grow them.. i have seen them in some food stores but never tasted them... what a shame..your post makes me curious..
ReplyDeleteGreat sketch at your sea
ReplyDeleteAnd I don't think they are near me
Unless I am just oblvious to it
Prob passed them in the store and didn't know it.
An okra is an okra by any other name...lol
ReplyDeleteYour art work is so good!
I've seen them called Ladies fingers too.
Wow, Hank, I didnt know you are an artist, too! Lovely sketch. I have never seen or tasted an okra, but have read about them often. Enjoyed your poem and your painting.
ReplyDeletegrew up eating the green stuff; fried, stewed, in gumbo. Good southern fare. Good write, and really like the art, well done.
ReplyDeleteBRIAN
ReplyDeleteQuite rare even here. Apparently it tastes the same. A sketch or photo uploaded in the blogs would look nicer,really. Thanks!
MARY
Thanks Ma'am. What I like about soft pastel is that it can be done in a jiffy! Yes, we can be very versatile with the green one.
CLAUDIA
Try it! You can even immerse a few in a bowl of boiling water and leave them for about 15 mins or half hour (depends on how soft you want them) You can then dip it in tomato or soya sauce and take it as appetizer with rice or tortilla.
PAT
Try it as suggested above. It's like having salad with mayonnaise
BREN
Thanks! Yes, it's true!
SHERRY
Thanks!You may get to see at a Chinese supermart
AWAKEN
Yes,all sorts whichever is ok and thanks!
Hank
Cool drawing... and that's a quickie sketch? Wow. I've never had okra actually... green or red. Great use of the prompt.
ReplyDeleteNice...never seen red Okra..my husband loves the green one. :))
ReplyDeleteOh wow!!! never seen a red one though...interesting!
ReplyDeletevegetables in expression mode..
ReplyDeleteI love your drawing! It glows :-) Not an okra eater--one of the few that I refuse, however, your poem was delicious!
ReplyDeleteI have never heard it called lady finger before--that's fascinating. We grow a lot of okra here, and I love it--if you sear it well, there is no slime. And all varieties are very ornamental with their cool yellow blooms with black-purple centers, the red variety is especially pretty, though hard to find. Thanks for the Ode to Okra, Hank, and the neat pics, especially your drawing.
ReplyDeleteNever heard that reference nor seen them red. I grow up eating curried okra and my mother prepared it so delicately I could never replicate it. Thanks for the memory and wonderful sketch! :)
ReplyDeleteLove breaded fried okra! Ever try making bread with it? mmmmmmmmm.....
ReplyDeleteWhen I first read this a couple of days ago your green one was so very real. No one had left any comments then. Now I see what others noticed - the green one is more real than the red one 'sketched' with a camera!
ReplyDeleteWell done, Hank
Enjoyed this. My grandmother made the best okra gumbo.
ReplyDeletemy mother use to grow them... love okra... one that i miss. will surely have lots when im home this december... yay!
ReplyDeleteJJRod'z
I like the way you see it!
ReplyDeletegreat art! had never heard okra of any color called "lady fingers" before... never have been a particular fan, either. :) much better to read a poem about it!
ReplyDeleteGreat artwork, Hank! Strange thing, we call it ladies' finger here at my place and that is what I always knew it as. :D A different take on the prompt is always good to read.
ReplyDeleteHank, you can't conjure a good mess of Jambalaya without okra. A ladies' finger by any other name...
ReplyDeleteYour sketch is lovely, too. Reminds me, I have to get over to the N'Oleans Take Out and get some yummies, with southern cornbread, of course...
Now I'm hungry and it's 11 pm. Drat. Great artwork all around! Amy
i don't care for fried okra but i love it in gumbo!
ReplyDeleteenjoyed this!