Lonely birch on shore
looking past the changing leaves,
Saying nothing more.
Copyright 2013 Brenda Davis Harsham
Tag Archives: photograph
Nature Inspires Haiku
Nature Sanctuary
Beautiful nature,
Awed life thrives, inspires kindness,
Humbled Selflessness.
Scarlet Autumn
This poem is dedicated to all the staff, administrators, fundraisers, planners, donors, Audubon members, environmentalists, activists and legislators who support our nature sanctuaries and parkland, the preservation of which make all our lives more rich, full of beauty and peaceful.
This poem is presented in honor of wePoets Show It, a great on-line forum sharing and showcasing poetry, art and creative talent, and is prepared from their Wednesday wordcloud writing prompt. Thanks wePoets for all you do!!
Copyright 2013 Brenda Davis Harsham
Autumnal Fascination Haibun
Autumn is my favorite season. Summer is too hot, winter too cold, spring too rainy, but autumn is just right. When I was growing up, I enjoyed kicking leaves, walking to school by myself, hearing them crunch underfoot. I even liked to rake leaves, but, shh, don’t tell my dad. Continue reading
Gnome Homes
Mushrooms damp, mushrooms wet,
mushroom fallen, overset.
Can I eat you or would I die?
Better be safe and leave you lie.
Fairies, sprites, elves and gnomes
Need your caps for their homes.
In darkness you bloom in your magic way
Tempting, taunting and fae.
Copyright 2013 Brenda Davis Harsham
Turning One Hundred
It takes a long time to become young.
— Pablo Picasso
Welcome to my hundredth post, a different kind of fairy tale today,
dedicated to someone well loved
who turned one hundred last Friday.
He was grumpy, nearly blind, taking small steps with a walker,
but still his blessings outnumber his age: Continue reading
Sprite Spite
A new Adventurous Fairy Tale, named Sprite Spite, is now available to read. An excerpt follows:
Sprite Spite
Wings swiftly beating, Amadou dodged saplings and swung wide around old soul trees, the wind pulling his curly, brown hair straight back. He felt the tree spirits slumbering in the cool midday, their leaves turning golden shades of autumn.
Amadou had been unfurling fiddlehead ferns all morning, and he needed to blow off steam. He was looking for a wide ledge of fungus, just the right height above the ferns. He could see it in his mind’s eye. That day, rain had created the perfect conditions. Diving sprites give a tremendous scream, arch their backs gracefully, wings folded. Then they take a running jump from the fungus ledge, falling through the thick, damp air, eventually bouncing from fern to fern and water slalom skiing in the dew on their tiny feet.
To continue reading, click on Sprite Spite.
Used with permission of acuriousgal
Copyright 2013 Brenda Davis Harsham
Some photographs used with kind permission of acuriousgal, a very talented photographer.
Painted Fall Haiku
Blooms fade and turn brown,
Cold nights imperil garden.
Late blooms delight eyes.
Copyright 2013 Brenda Davis Harsham
Puddle-Wonderful Haibun
“The world is mud-luscious…
[and] puddle-wonderful”
e.e. cummings
My neighbor greeted me mournfully with these sad words: “Your house always has that large puddle in front of it,” and she pointed. Sure enough, I could have laid down in that puddle, and it would still have been longer than me and wider, too.
“That’s okay,” I responded with a smile. “I have two small boys who will love that puddle.” She looked taken aback, but I was the kind of mother to take my boys puddle-stomping on a whim. We named that puddle Alligator Pond. Many times, we stomped there, in water shoes and rain boots, and found ourselves anointed with the magic waters.
Now we can see all the world in a puddle, earth, sky, trees and ourselves.
Puddle splash laughter,
Muddy knees, arms windmilling,
rainwater in boots.
Copyright 2013 Brenda Davis Harsham
Note: If you like the haibun poetry style (prose followed by haiku), and want to dip a toe, you can find this week’s prompt at Ligo Haibun.
Further Note: The puddle in the photograph is not Alligator Pond, which is much dirtier and much closer to the sidewalk.
Rainy Day Haiku
Awaking, skies dark,
Raindrops beat time on my heart,
Still room for beauty.
Copyright 2013 Brenda Davis Harsham
Late Bloom Haiku
Hydrangeas bowing,
Blushing with autumn kisses;
Fallen leaf ignored.
Copyright 2013 Brenda Davis Harsham
Geometry in Two Haiku
Lichen attaches,
Softening the brick walkway.
Other plants follow.
Grasses, weeds and moss,
Shaped by humans and nature,
Geometric love.
Copyright 2013 Brenda Davis Harsham
Bloom of Life Haibun
At the suggestion of my friend Jules Paige, I am dipping a toe in the still waters of the haibun, an art form embodied by prose followed by a haiku. The prompt is by Ligo Haibun, and with a choice of two pictures, I chose call2read‘s, and here goes:
Bloom of Life
And so my life unfolded, petal by petal, each memory as silky as a dewy rose petal brushed against my cheek. Shivers of dreams, slivers of thorns, sparkle of moon and stars. As a child, just a bud protected by my thick green casing, I did not always understand adult things. I dreamt of traveling the world, finding friends, eating new foods, learning every day new things. Slowly, my green shield loosened and opened. The days seemed infinite, opening petal by petal. I traveled, I made friends, and I learned every day. Now the rose of my life is fully open to the sun, and summer’s heat has made my soul expand in all directions, drinking in light, energy and warmth from friends, places and memories.
Spark of life sustains,
Creativity expands
Peace, love, joy with friends.
Copyright 2013 Brenda Davis Harsham
Friendly Fairy Tales 