Let’s get real—opening a pomegranate sucks.

At least it used to.

Each one of those ripe, juicy, flavor-packed kernels of divine antioxidant-rich goodness needs to be cherished…in my mouth—not on my hands, the wall, or my glasses.

Pomegranates have been my absolute favorite fruit for decades, but I only just learned how to open them properly a few years ago. I saw this video and it was life-changing. That’s not hyperbole. I’m being serious. I’m an expat living in Turkey with a backyard full of pomegranate trees and until I saw this video, my fingers, hair, and most surfaces in my home looked like a watered down crime scene.

May it be of benefit to you too:

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If you’re still reading (and didn’t run out to get a pomegranate to try out that trick)…here are a few pomegranate quotes to enjoy now that you’ve saved time and laundry.

I should add, as a Rumi fan for probably ever—I don’t remember life before I knew of Rumi—his poetry was my first reason to move to Turkey some 12 years ago. I had once photographed a poem of his and, as everything in life is connected, it was partially about pomegranates. The first thing I did when I moved here was to seek out an orchard of pomegranate trees. I had to wait an entire year until I saw my first blossom. I was (and still is) worth it:

“Come to the orchard in Spring.
There is light and wine, and sweethearts
in the pomegranate flowers.

If you do not come, these do not matter.
If you do come, these do not matter.” ~ Rumi

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“Fun fact #1 about pomegranates: Pomegranates are awesome.
Fun fact #2: Pomegranates are like little explosions of awesome in your mouth.
Fun fact #3: A lot of people think you’re not supposed to eat the seeds of a pomegranate – but that’s not true, people who tell you that are liars, and they don’t know anything about life, and they should never be trusted.” ~ Tahereh Mafi

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“‘Look at all the life in this,’ she said. ‘Every pip could become a tree, and every tree could bear another hundred fruits and every fruit could bear another hundred trees. And so on to infinity.’
I picked the picks from my tongue with my fingers.
‘Just imagine,’ she said. ‘If every seed grew, there’d be no room in the world for anything but pomegranate trees.'” ~ David Almond

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“I felt my heart crack slowly like a pomegranate, spilling its seeds.” ~ Trebor Healey

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“The purple butterflies fluttered about with gold dust on their wings, visiting each flower in turn; the little lizards crept out of the crevices of the wall, and lay basking in the white glare; and the pomegranates split and cracked with the heat, and showed their bleeding red hearts. Even the pale yellow lemons, that hung in such profusion from the mouldering trellis and along the dim arcades, seemed to have caught a richer colour from the wonderful sunlight, and the magnolia trees opened their great globe-like blossoms of folded ivory, and filled the air with a sweet heavy perfume.” ~ Oscar Wilde

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“I remember that pomegranate well- the leathery red skin, the fleshy weight of it in my hand promising wine-sweet clusters of ruby fruit. As I lifted it off the pile, I imagined the satisfying crunch, the release of tangy perfume, the juices glazing my lips and running down my chin. Ah, that biblical fruit with its poignant umbilical tip, choice of the gods and food of the dead.” ~ Elle Newmark

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