Sonnet for a sphere

Take an apple. Chop it into quarters.
Count out three. These represent the lakes
that nestle inside countries, all the snaking 
rivers joined with seas – the blue that’s water.

Put them aside. This last remaining slice
stands for the land. Divide it into eight.
Discard the barren: the distant icy waste,
The thirsty desert, rocky unreached heights.

What’s left? Just one last sliver of a sphere.
Unpeel its skin. Hold up that patch of green
between your thumb and fingertip. It’s here
the soil is rich and seeds take root. The crops
we need to harvest, where our livestock feed 
are all in this. Be careful now – don’t drop it.

• following the instructions in the poem using an apple. What does it tell you about the earth?