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September 20, 2015

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Photography, Poetry

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Fairy Dust Haibun

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To step amongst giant phlox, rudbeckia and Russian sage is to enter a suburban fairyland, a small oasis surrounded by the desert of houses, concrete and asphalt.

meadow blooms
sharp fragrance intoxicates
fingers sap-sticky

Bronxville garden

Goldfinches feast on spiky echinacea seeds, while redheaded woodpeckers knock on fence posts. Sparrows dart under eaves. Day lilies bob, and a rabbit emerges from the grassy leaves, smug and plump. The gardener is the majordomo.

crickets stir
hundreds of insects hum
spiders spin

Bronxville garden and umbrella

A shady spot provides a view of an apple tree, too young to bear fruit. At its feet, the profusion of jeweled blossoms is blinding. Magic floats past in the sunbeams. Time slows to this one perfect moment.

Fairy dust gilds bees and
sparkles on flower petals.
Dragonflies hover
like hummingbirds,
held aloft by magic
or science
or faith.
Sudden breezes
bring a rainstorm
of fairy dust,
dried to pollen
by the hazy sun,
solar fast.

But even magic
cannot make summer last.

Copyright 2015 Brenda Davis Harsham

Note: A haibun is a Japanese form of prose alternating with poetry, often haiku. It’s often a recollection of one’s day, in present tense. A few moments in a garden, and suburbia drops away. These photos and memories are from Bronxville, New York, where I happily helped a friend celebrate his 60th birthday. Bronxville is a village of Westchester County, part of the Tri-State Area that surrounds New York City. People commute to Manhattan in half an hour. Have a magical weekend!

61 thoughts on “Fairy Dust Haibun”

  3. This is beautiful. I love the way you write on garden and its magic.
    This is the same way I feel a lot about my Garden.
    It is my Sanctuary for everything – it is a place I hide, to play, to be inside its maze.
    The one place I can escape and be myself, and be away from the reality of the outside world for awhile … 🙂

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  4. You took me on a beautiful trip in that garden Brenda, I feel like I just flew round like a bee!! 😀 Gardens with an abundance of flowers growing are more like cities than our idea of a garden. The miniature life is extremely busy. We are so big, and important – we hardly notice the traffic!! 😉 This looks so rural, you’d never know it was anywhere near New York. Hope your friend had a lovely birthday! 🙂

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  7. What a busy and magical garden!! I love your haibun, Brenda! My first taste of haibun on your blog made me fall in love with this form. Have a great weekend. Nature still brings us sunny warm days here:)

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      • I love autumn…last night it was so lovely walking home in the cool breeze but still not needing a sweater and looking up at the moon…I have to be careful not trip over my feet. btw, your photos are just beautiful!! I know it is a lot of work and edits…I am going Haiga crazy on my other blog and the photos give me more work than the poetry but I love it. Have a great weekend, Brenda! xxx (((((hugs))))

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  14. So beautiful, Brenda. I always feel that magic is extra strong this time of year; it might not have the power to hold summer in place forever, but it sure does try!

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