How does Craig Arnold's poem Meditation on a Grapefruit show us how to be more present in the living of our lives? How is it an "exquisite lesson in...

Craig
Arnolds poem Meditation on a Grapefruit is an ode to the essential
importance of everyday life.  The grapefruit represents nothing more than the beginning of a day
filled with routine, but Arnolds exquisite attention to detail elevates the poems meaning and
gives it a life that the subject matter might otherwise not warrant.  Read in the context of the
2008 publication of Arnolds second compilation of poetry, Made
Flesh, Meditation on a Grapefruit is part of a broader
examination of the meaning of life, including the inexorable march of time and the ultimate
resolution to which we will all eventually succumb (notably, Arnold died the year after this
compilation was published at the young age of 41, presumably from a hiking accident while
exploring a volcano in Japan).  The attention to detail Arnold provides in the otherwise mundane
activity of preparing a grapefruit for breakfast follows his expression of joy with the
dawn...

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