I
You are nothing but a lemon,
yet you have all the light
that fills the world.
The saying “If you have to buy lemons means you have no friends” has a certain poignancy.
It implies that lemons are so abundant in home gardens that true community and friendship means sharing them freely.
So having to buy lemons might subtly signal a lack of close community ties or personal failure.
Since moving house and leaving behind multiple lemon trees every winter, I’m constantly looking for lemons and wondering if indeed I have no friends.
However, I must redeem this impression by saying that a dear friend Carey had gifted me with a moving in present of a lemon tree, but lemon trees grow slowly and so far its output has been less than I need.
So, when last Sunday my friend Isobel came to catch up and together set the affairs of the world straight, she came with a bag of freshly picked fragrant lemons from her daughter’s tree.
It was like she was giving me a bag of precious jewels.
Lemons, have a fascinating history — they’ve travelled the world and shaped cuisines, medicines, and even economies.
They are a hybrid fruit, a result of ancient crossbreeding: the most likely birthplace being the foothills of the Himalayas about 2000 years ago.
Introduced in the 13th century via trade routes and initially prized as a luxury fruit, now an integral ingredient in cuisines across the globe.
In many cultures, lemons are also associated with cleansing both physically (like detoxifying the body) and metaphorically.
The bright, sharp quality of the lemon often symbolizes clarity and the removal of impurities
II
You are the sun’s son,
you’ve absorbed the flame,
you’ve stored it in your rind,
and when we peel you,
it bursts forth,
the citrus explosion
of the light you carry
from the summer’s full breast.
Excerpt Ode to a Lemon, Pablo Neruda
Lemons ripen in the heart of winter, when most other fruits are scarce.
That makes them both symbols of resilience—thriving in harsh conditions—and necessary for health, thanks to their vitamin C and immune-boosting properties.
Found now in every supermarket, where regrettably appearance is everything, they are no match in freshness for the backyard variety.
Attractively uniform with smoothly unblemished, gleaming skins they are treated to extend shelf life.
Wax coatings are applied after washing to replace the fruit’s natural protective coating.
In some countries and that includes US and Australia post – harvest fungicides may be added to the wax to prevent mould or rot.
Once washed the lemon’s zest lacks all intensity of flavour.
I cut you,
and the perfume of your rind
floods the air,
and your flavour
dances on the tongue
like a melody
from a distant song
Excerpt, Ode to A Lemon, Pablo Neruda
It’s incredible how this sharp vibrant fruit is used in so many recipes across the globe, from main dishes to condiments to drinks.
In Greece, there’s Avgolemono, a silky soup of chicken broth, rice egg and lemon, in Morocco there’s chicken with olives and preserved lemons and in Mexico Ceviche is seafood ‘cooked’ in lemon juice.
And what about an old fashioned lemon meringue pie made with homemade curd?
Or a lemon and honey drink to ward off winter ills?
Since freshly picked lemons are bright, vibrant, and have a fresh, zesty aroma, they symbolize new beginnings, energy, and vitality.
Yet lemons are also sometimes associated with negative meaning.
VI
You are sweet and bitter
like the light,
like life itself.
Through your golden rind
flows the spirit of summer,
the essence of joy,
and you grant us
the power to transform
sourness into sweetness.
Excerpt, Ode to a Lemon, PabloNeruda
Often used in relation to a purchase of a car or similar is the phrase, ‘buying a lemon’.
It generally refers to making a purchase that turns out to be disappointing or of poor quality, especially when discussing vehicles or major investments.
Another phrase ‘When life gives you lemons, make lemonade’ plays into the idea that lemons are symbolic of life’s challenges or difficult situations.
Their sour taste can represent adversity, but the act of making lemonade from them symbolizes resilience, turning something sour into something sweet.
Originally coined by Christian anarchist writer Elbert Hubbard in a 1915 obituary he wrote and published for dwarf actor Marshall Pinckney Wilder, entitled The King of Jesters, praises Wilder’s optimistic attitude and achievements in the face of his disabilities:
‘He cashed in on his disabilities. He picked up the lemons that fate gave him and started a lemonade stand’
The Optimist
Life handed him a lemon,
As Life sometimes will do.
His friends looked on in pity,
Assuming he was through.
They came upon him later,
Reclining in the shade
In calm contentment, drinking
A glass of lemonade.”
Lemons show up in art, music, literature and even film not just as fruit, but as rich symbols of everything from temptation and wealth to decay and disappointment.
Think of “Lemon Tree” by Peter, Paul and Mary—a deceptively simple song that uses the lemon tree as a metaphor for love’s painful lessons: an anthem for bittersweet reflection.
When I was just a lad of ten, my father said to me
Come here and take a lesson from the lovely lemon tree
Don’t put your faith in love, my boy,” my father said to me
I fear you’ll find that love is like the lovely lemon tree.”
Lemon tree very pretty, and the lemon flower is sweet,
But the fruit of the poor lemon is impossible to eat.”
From the works of Carravaggio, Monet and Matisse to our own Margaret Olley lemons feature prominently in their paintings.
Margaret Olley’s work is grounded in the familiar. Lemons, humble yet visually striking are arranged in baskets, ceramic bowls or spilling out onto a deep coloured draped cloth, a celebration of the natural and the beautiful.
Probably the most famous poetry about lemons comes from Pablo Neruda in his Ode to Lemons and the sonnet A Lemon.
He compares the beauty of the lemon tree with its rich lustrous leaves and golden globules to a planetarium with the lemons as stars, leaning into the religious symbolism of the lemon itself.
Cutting the lemon the knife leaves a little cathedral:
alcoves unguessed by the eye that open acidulous glass to the light;
topazes riding the droplets, altars, aromatic facades
Excerpt A Lemon, Pablo Neruda
Hopefully you will not have to buy any lemons but that a friend or neighbour will pass you some freshly picked ones from their bountiful tree.
The Woorilla Poetry Prize 2025 is now open for entries. Please visit the following website, woorilla.org.au
