15th June, 2024 - Watermelon Dreams

I recently ate a watermelon that resulted in me realising it's impossible to be unhappy while eating watermelon.

As a child, I think I probably had watermelon once or twice. I experienced watermelon-flavoured things numerous times, such as ice lollies or bubblegum, but I didn't think the flavour was all that enjoyable, and I hadn't eaten enough actual watermelon to know that the real thing tastes differently. I kept eating things with watermelon flavouring, though, because you simply don't say no to ice lollies, bubblegum and the like as a child.

Anyway, perhaps this plays some part in why watermelon feels so special in my adult life. The real thing, that is. It feels like a rare, precious food. Even preparing it for eating is unlike anything else we tend to eat.

I inexpertly chopped it up into cubes. Some of them were more like paper-thin slices! I tried a piece while cutting it up, but it was warm and slightly unpleasant because of it.

After chilling the cubes, slices and pages of watermelon, it was transformed into a refreshing, juicy treat. I almost couldn't stop eating it, and felt like I could never be full of it!

I forgot that I had put the rind (is that what it's called?) in the bin in the kitchen, and they sat in there, in the warm, for a couple of days. When I took the bag out, it was filled with water and it smelled really bad. The smell stayed in my nostrils even when I arrived at work!

But, despite that, the sweet, sweet taste is what lingers in my mind. I think it's impossible to feel unhappy while eating watermelon, and I think it's impossible to feel unhappy while thinking about eating watermelon.