Indiscriminate Sestina

Indiscriminate Sestina

Of all my favorite chocolate
desserts, I like the ones draped in caramel
with pieces of chopped pecans,
slathered in air filled marshmallow,
sprinkled with emerald coconut,
making a perfect Irish torte.

This is not a court tort, but a torte
made of the good dark chocolate
sometimes used in cookies, like coconut
macaroons, with dollops of caramel,
the edges filled in bits of pecans.

My favorite ice cream is praline…pecans
placed between layers of rich torte,
covered in ooey, gooey marshmallow,
drizzled with homemade caramel,
adding steaming hot milk chocolate
syrup, with fresh, shredded coconut.


I like cream pies of grated coconut,
but best of all, those made with sliced pecans,
a cardinal sin filling of caramel
on a butter and brown sugar crushed shell torte,
then, around the plate, stepping-stones of chocolate
dotted with daubs of melted marshmallow.

In a jar, a can, or bag…a marshmallow
leads me to make fancy coconut
S’mores, covered in Belgian chocolate,
lying on a bed of hand picked slivered pecans,
cradling a raspberry cream cheese torte,
topped with figure eights of warm caramel.

Should one eat the caramel,
then wallow in the marshmallow,
or perhaps fall into the raspberry torte
sprinkled with shaved coconut,
surrounded by deluxe pecans,
dipped in hot thick fudgie chocolate…

The caramel and the coconut will stick between one’s teeth.
The marshmallow with pecans could crack a crown in two.
The torte…covered in lucious Godiva chocolate…will finish you.

Zona Lawrence