"It is not enough to cover the rock with leaves.
We must be cured of it by a cure of the ground
Or a cure of ourselves, that is equal to a cure
Of the ground, a cure beyond forgetfulness.
And yet the leaves, if they broke into bud,
If they broke into bloom, if they bore fruit,
And if we ate the incipient colorings
Of their fresh culls might be a cure of the ground."
— "The Rock," a poem by Wallace Stevens from
a section with the same title in the Collected Poems .
The red of the watermelon eaten on the cover of the
August 28, 2023, New Yorker is RGB (240, 57, 53) —
Cinnabar Red, also known as Vermilion.
For related poetic remarks, see a post of Leap Day 2004 .