By Sahara and Gene Simmons
Date: 18 February 2000

Bruised Like an Apple But Hangin' On

***The Beginning***
Golden Delicious was tired. Bruised. But still hanging from the
tree...hoping that someone would come along and take a big
bite out of her.
"I know my juicy savor is healthy and habit forming..." 
(self-affirmations come in handy when there's no one around)
     One balmy night in the mediocre middle of May, a little
boy ambled along. He was hungry. He was lost. All he needed to
cure what ailed him was a juicy apple. His nose led him into the
shadowy orchard. His heart led him to the lone tree by the fence.
He reached for the small, rosy orb and took a bite.
  "At last," Golden Delicious sighed.
  "Finally, I'm marked. Finally, I'm being devoured. What 
music to my ears...he's smacking his lips! I'm glad I was left
alone all these years so that he could find me here. Now I know
I wasn't unlucky, after all. There really is a Big Picture...and
I'm part of it!"