Reduction | A Poem by Julie Clark

A closeup of a pot of soup simmering on the stove
Reduction | A Poem by Julie Clark

Simmering on a back burner

Evaporating

Diminishing

To concentrate flavor

And thicken the broth or sauce

Aging, chronic illness, plus the pandemic

Reducing me

Refining is painful

Simmering on the back burner is no fun

Pruning makes me sore

Yet

Hopeful to become

More truly who I am

A thicker, more flavorful me

Let it continue

Grow and stretch

Let the trials

The isolation

Turn me into

A highly concentrated glaze

A viscous

Honey or roux

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