What Rhymes with Orange?

I peel it in a spiral, juicy segments
like spokes. Sun-blaze sweet
citrus of summertime. Opulent,
round Christmas stocking gift. Like pregnant
bellies. A baby with a pacifier blossoms
from white lace. This nectar, distilled
into its essence, will purify sin. So many
foolish decisions collect in litany.
I need atonement. Praise be this beatitude, this
answer to orisons. Nothing
but a citron benediction. Titian rind,
once removed, becomes amen.

I chose to start with the word "orange," because of its reputation as a nonstarter when it comes to poems (hence the title). I brainstormed into my Sony Digital Voice Recorder while walking my dog, then later posed a question via my Facebook status, asking people to tell me what they thought of when they thought of an orange. Then, taking my own words and their associations, I spent a little time harvesting words at Thesaurus.com. Finally, I worked these associations into a poem. Many years ago, I often used to sit down with a thesaurus before writing a poem, generating a list of words and then using them. Maybe I'll do that more often.