Following squalls,
the windfalls have trebled,
tempested down.
They must be sorted,
each candidate turned over,
carefully assessed.
It is slow, meditative work,
each movement spare,
minimal -
Zen.

The slightest beak-dip damage
the merest hint of indentation
will rot
and some are deep,
and some are fine,
and some invisible to the eye.
One must gently quest
with fingertips,
become blind to appearance
star-nosed-mole*-sense
every inconsistent blemish
for how else can one
gauge
what lies beneath?

* A Star-Nosed Mole literally has a fleshy starry nose that looks rather like two hands worth of fingers or a sea anemone or something along that line.