[ARRY WOIWODE

l arrv woiwode
(b r94r) grew uP
After
,.*nn Dakota and lllinois
in his
moving to New York CitY
t*enties, he began to Publish
the New
ooems and stories in
Ha r Per's'
i nrf r r, Atto ntir MonthlY'
magazines'
and other Prestigious
o*on* his books are the highlY
I'm Coing
,cctrli,ed novels Whot
(r969) and BeYond
'in, t rnint'
lo-io,
a,a'oo^ watt \t915)'tn918
Dakota'
he moved backto North
*h"r. h. lives on a smallfarm
and continues to
write'
obser-
Woiwode uses Precise
to
vation and a sense of Place
worlds He
open uP his fictional
"seems to be a
notes that there
For
oaradox in writingfiction
and sim-
lorn" r."rron the Purest

Ode to an Orange
the most
olart r"nt"nt"s Permit
them ln
m.rning to adhere to
sPecific a
ottrer w-ords, ttre more
is about a Place
,i*Pl. ,"nt"nte Larry Woiwode
us saY' the
in North Dakota' let
that
tor" ,orn"ont from outside
r."nion ,aat' to read universalitY
"ode to an Or-
inio it." Although
,ng"" to.,ttt on an object rather
tfra'n , Ptace' tf'e same PrinciPle
,oof ln engagingly detailed
'"t. Woiwode remembers
,"nt"n."',
,o".ificexPeriences but evokes
a universal romance
with an
selection first
ideal orange This
ltn
,pi.ur.a Paris Review in r985'

ORDINARY
12 OBSERVING THE
 OII. 1'H('}SE ()ItAN(iI]S AIIRIVINC; IN'THE MII)ST
the North l)akota witrters of the forties-the mere
color of thenr, calriecl thror,rgh the door in a net bag
or a cr.rtc ll'otr or,rt of the white winter landscape.
-fhcir was enough to set my brother and
appearance
nre to tl.rinking that it might be about time to develop
an illrrcss, rvl'rich wirs the sttrest way of receiving
stcacly supply of tl-rer-r-r.
"Mon.t, we think rvc're getting a cold."
" lVcl You me.lrt, yoll two wallt an orange?"
-lhis was clifflcult firr us to answer or dispute; the
nrirtter seenrecl tlovecl beyotrd our mere wanting.
"lf you rvarrt au oratrge," she would say, "wl-ry don't
,vorr irsk lbr onc?"
"Wc rvant ittt oLitttge."
"'Wc' again. 'Wc wnrrt trrt orartge."'
"May we' hirvc a.tr-t orartge, please."
"-fhat's tl-re rvay yott krtow I like you to ask for one'
Now, rvhy ckrn't cach of you ask for one in that san-re
r>e rvay, but separately?"
"Mor.t.t . . ." AIrcl so on. There was no depth of
degraclation thirt rve wouldrr't clescerld to in order to
qet one. If the orrrrtges hacln't werlded their w;ry
-fhanksgiving, they were sure to arrive
nolthwarcl by
bclirrc the (lhristrttas season, stacked first in crates at
thc clepot, frlling that n.tusty place, where pews sat
bircl< to back, r'vith a sprir.rgtin-re acidity, as if tl.re
bLrilcling l'racl been rinsed witl.r ar renewing elixir that
set it right firr yet another year. Then the crates would
rppcar at the l0cal grocery store, ofteu with the top
slats priecl back on a lew of them, so that we were
,rrvarc of rr rcsittt'rLts srttell of fresh wood in erddition
to the alreacly orangy atmosphere that foretold the
scilson r.nore explicitly thart any caleudar.
Ancl in tl.re bloken-open crates (as if burst by the
po.,ver of thc' orattges thentselves), one or two of the
Jovely spheres would lie tree of the tissue tl.rey came
rvlappecl in-alrvays prr,rrplc tissue, as if that were the
only color that coulcl contain the populations of thenl
in thcir nestlccl positions. The crates bore paper labels
at one encl-of atr oratrgc' asainst a blue background,
or of a blue goose agairtst .rn orange background-
signifying the colorfirl otherworld (unlike or"rr wintry
one) that these phenor-rterrir had errisen fiotll. Eacl't
orange, stripped of its protective wrappring, as vivid
ir-r your vision as a pebbled slln, encouragcd you tir
picture a whole pyramid of then-r in a btlwl orl yotll'
dining room table, glowing in the light, rs if givirrg
off the warmth that came through the r'vitlclows fronl
a the real winter sun. And all of then-r caltle staulpecl
with a blue-purple name as fcrreign as the otherivorld
that you might in'ragine as their place of origin, scr
that on Christmas day you would flnd yourself clig-
ging past everything c'lse ir.r your Christmirs stocking,
as if tunnelir.rg dowr.r to the country of China, in
"
order to reach the rouncled bulge at thc tip ofthe toe
which meat-rt that yor'r hacl received a personal re-
minder of another state of existence, wl"rolly separate
from your own.
The packed heft and textlrre, finally, of arr orirnge
ir.r your l.rand-this is it!-ancl the erttptiotr of snrell
and the watery fireworks as a knif'e, in the hand of
someone skilled, Iike our mother, goes slicing
,' through the skin so perf-ect for slicing. 'II.ris grtseotrs
spray can fbrrn a rnist like sntoke, which can thcrl be
lit with a n-ratch to create acttttrl firervot'ks if there is rr
chance to hide alone with a match (nlatcl.res bcins
lbrbidden) and the peel fror.r.r onc. liputtery icnitions
can also be producecl by sclueezing a peel Ilear a catl-
clle (at least one candle is generally alrvays going at
Christmastime), and the lefiover peels are sct otr thc
stove top to scent the house.
Ar-rd tl-re ir-rgenious way in which orarlges collle
packed into their globes! The greer.r nib at thc top'
like a detonator, can be bitten off, as if clisarr.r.ring tl.re
orange, in order to clear a place fbr you to sillk a
tooth under the peel. This is the bcst rvay to slart. If
you bite at the peel too uruch, your h'ont tceth will
feel scraped, like dry bone, ancl yor.rr lips r'vill lregin to
burn from the bitter oil. Bettc'r to sirlk rt tooth itlttr
this greenish or creamy depression, irtlcl then pick at
that poir.rt with the nail of your thun'rb' removins a
little piece of the peel irt a tir"tte. Latcr, you might
want to practice to see holv large a piece yott carl
refirove intact. The peel can also be undtllle irl otle
contir-tuotts ribbon, a feat which nlaybe yottr fitthel is
\\'oirrrrclt' I ()tlt to ,ttt ()rtttgt' t3
 olthe
to everyone' Close your eyes to
be.
the orange is freed' happens
able to perform, so that after ,uf. ,id., ar.rd fot the eruption in your mouth of the
rewound' will stand in its
ioof.ing yellowish, the peel' slivers of watery lreat' which
should be broken and
original shaPe, although emPtY' the esseuce of or-
"-ift" now be rolled fir-re over your tollgue for
yaf"*ish whole of the orange can .#. o.o if indeed you have sensed yourself
coming
about a dozen' by be- will
divided into sections, usually doi"n *ith a coid, there is ar chance
that you feel
the middle; after this'
,t""t", with a division down will be able n drru.n from your head-your uose
and sinuses

!u.n ,i,ion, enclosed in its papery skin' the n.ridst of the scent of a
peel
is ,"JO."tt opening-in
i. U" ttfr.a and torn loose more easily' There
a

a mushroom and eating an orange'

,l- the center of the sections like whole-rolled into
"n eaten' A special variety
e.ta or"urlg.s can also be eaten
,tuff., U,rt tougher; this can be with a pencil (if you
a spongy rnis u'.td punctured
has an extra qoylh' ot
of orange, without any pits, l"t', n]ta this offer.rsive) or a knife' and then sucked
tiny orange' tucked into its
tite half of a juice is gole' you can disem-
,rr.rUUi.,]
bitter as the peel' fn..' once the
bouort. This nubbin is nearly as "p...
bowel the orange as you wish
and eat away its pulpy
worry' Some- of the
but it can be eaten, too; don't remains, and eat once more
into the whitish interior
embedded in
,".tio.r, will have miniature sections ofthe peel, which scours the coating
from your teeth
the impression
aft.- .ta clinging as if for life' giving und ,rruk", your r.run.rbing lips
and tip of your,tongue
and should you hap-
it u"u*t u." uti"g hatched'
,i".a," tingle and swell up from behind'
until' ir.r the
"i nna some of these you've found the sweetest
(shining through an empty
f.r, to light fromlhe windows
-morsels of anY' see orange again trom.the inside'
t: half' as " glass bowl), you
If you prefer to have your orange lU:9 6n, orur-,r.r, solid o's' light from
afar in the.midst of
peel will abrade the
,o.n. p.opl. do, the edges of the you the freeze' and not unlike that
unspherical fruit
feel raw' as
.o.n.r, oiyor.t, mouth' making them which first went from Eve to
Adam ar.rd from there
of the rind (which is the only
into the white and me'
.ut dorarn
through the (to abbreviate matters) to my brother
*"1, do it) until you can see daylight
,. "Mom, we think we're getting a cold"'
its outside' Your eyes
orangy bubbles composing "You mean, You want an orange?"
way to eat an orange'
migh-iburu there is no proper This is difficult to answer or dispute
or even to ac-
the
tf it... are pits, they fan get in the waY'-and the subject
fullness that
more you'll.find your knowledge, finally, with the
slower you eat an orange' the deserves' and that each orange
bears' within its own
together' And no matter how care- in-
fingers sticking
quarter' )urce can -ut ".,p, into this hard-edged yet insubstantiaf
fully you eat one, or bite into a comPlete, cold, wintrY world'
o
your mouth; this
ny or slip from a corner of
"i*"y,

14 OBSERVING THE ORDINARY