A symbol of prosperity & ambition

As a child a pomegranate was a treat around Halloween. There was always much excitement and debate about the best way to eat the seeds, avoiding the bitter skin. The preferred option in our house was to use a pin... As someone with little patience the novelty soon wore off. Looking back I can't really understand why we got so excited about something that was fairly bitter and often quite dry. The relative exoticness I guess?

Then I moved to Jordan where the sign of big, fat, juicy pomegranates for sale at the side of the road heralded the start of Autumn. In Jordan they are deliciously sweet, and so ripe the seeds fall out of the fruit... No messing with pins there.

It took my nice move to Japan however for me to catch site of my very first pomegranate shrub, full of fruit... And not even in an orchard or garden but there are a number of them lining my route to work. :) For the Ancient Egyptians pomegranates were a symbol of prosperity and ambition. Lets hope there is some truth in that... I could do with a bit of prosperity ;)

You find no pomegranates on the willow tree and no shame in the wicked.
Unknown.