Gathering her brows like gathering storm,
Nursing her wrath to keep it warm.
Robert Burns
Used with kind permission of Tracy at Wanderlust
Blue Bella wakes late,
Sun already high.
Today is the date
To dance in the sky.
Frost fairies come
From far and wide,
Beating a copper drum,
Dancing a silvery glide.
Devan comes alone
Sad in his heart,
So far from home,
Bringing his frost art.
flight of the eagle, used by permission of Kristjaan Panneman
flight of the eagle
stepping into the world of dreams –
a silent cry
[.........(c) Chèvrefeuille]
message from my spirit guide,
pale head pacing the north wind
arctic air crushes
frost settles over rivers
cold bites off dreams
[…………..your two lines here]
Note: In Tan Renga, poets alternate writing of haiku and “rejoinders” which are two lines, seven syllables each. The first haiku was written by Kristjaan Panneman (Chèvrefeuille). His challenge is for another poet to add two lines to his 3-line haiku, making the combined poem a tan renga. I then added another haiku, and I invite anyone who wants to, please write a 2 line (ideally 7 syllables each) rejoinder to my new haiku in a comment or on your own post…
Further Note: Tan Renga is a Japanese poetry tradition of one author supplying a haiku and then next a 7-7 syllable rejoinder. (The form would be a tanka if written by one person, but is a tan renga if written by two.) Poets can alternate haiku and 7-7 rejoinders as long as they like, sort of a crazy poets party game.
Edit: Jules and Beth both added more rejoinders (aka 7-7s) and haiku, and we have written a long, dreamy sequence on Jules site. Thanks to everyone, this crazy poet has really enjoyed the back and forthing!!
References:
http://thewordshop.tripod.com/asian/Japan/tanrenga.html
http://thewordshop.tripod.com/asian/Japan/rengadef.html
http://encyclopedia2.thefreedictionary.com/Renga
Sometimes life gets away from me. Like the winter sun, the central things I care about seem too distant to keep my focus. I start to pay attention to the cold, the ice, the blocked flow of my life. And yet, through the trees, the sun returns, to remind me of all the things that form the center of my life.
sunshine on cold days
casting long shadows on the snow
spilling star shine
Ranger and Monty © Kathryn Forbes 2013
I’m not the first to ever write about finding friends. And I won’t be the last. I looked at Goodreads quotes about friends, and they number 1071. I felt like the most noble of researchers just continuing to read past page one. Yes, folks, in your honor I actually read page 2! Whew, that’s 60 quotes. Here’s one gem from page 2:
I don’t suppose you have many friends. Neither do I. I don’t trust people who say they have a lot of friends. It’s a sure sign that they don’t really know anyone. — Carlos Ruiz Zafón
Conjure me a warm day;
Bend holly into a wreath.
Leave trinkets where they lay,
Intertwine grasses from the heath.
Weave in some dried lavender,
Intersperse some winter berries,
Neglect not magical provender,
Add a curl of thyme for the fairies.
In the gloaming, carry it nigh.
“With some warmth, you’ll be blessed,”
Spake the White Witch’s soft sigh.
“I take with joy these things for my nest.”
Copyright 2014 Brenda Davis Harsham
Notes: Inspired by the Sunday Whirl, Wordle 144.
We are all children together looking for answers,
Cheered by beauty, gymnasts, athletes or dancers.
We look for family, love or a release to our pain,
For food, comfort, or shelter from fear and distain.
We are all alike: blessed by every sunny day,
Then cast down by ice storms and endless gray.
Definition of reverie: n. rev•er•ie (ˈrɛv ə ri)
1. a state of meditation or fanciful musing: lost in reverie;
2. a daydream;
3. a fantastic, visionary, or impractical idea.
— The Free Dictionary
Mary Cassatt painted a woman contemplating a flower and titled the painting Reverie. I stared at that painting, reproduced in an Impressionist art book, struck by the name, a word unheard for years. I looked around the crowded Starbucks, and everyone was looking at a screen or talking intently to others. I wondered when was the last time I experienced a reverie. Do they exist anymore? Are they like the fabled unicorn, only appearing to young children?
round, red zinnia
smells sweetly of rainy days
tastes of summer
I remember reveries from childhood. One time I toasted a hotdog on a bonfire. It was burnt on the outside and cold on the inside. Afterwards, I felt sleepy, contemplating the fire. I had a twilight dream that I was the hotdog, burnt on the side facing the fire and freezing on the side away.
I originally wanted these three photographs to be one visual haiku, in my case meaning a poem in three lines, each photograph to represent a line. However, I found the term already in use, and I decided that each one individually fits the common definition: a photograph that says something more than the contents; it uses two or three elements to suggest more than is present. I hope you enjoy my three visual haiku.
Copyright 2014 Brenda Davis Harsham
References:
http://peace.wikia.com/wiki/Visual_Haiku
https://www.lensculture.com/articles/masao-yamamoto-visual-haiku
http://www.digitalphotoacademy.com/DpaObjects/viewTip/4450
http://www.haikupoetshut.com/viskundx.html
http://www.flickr.com/groups/visualhaiku/
To the drooling snow monster,
who swallowed my thoughts of spring whole,
the sun will be coming for you,
in a month or two.
A few budding artists were inspired to draw their own snow monsters:
By M.H., aged 5, via his mom at Complexity through Joy
Coloring Page by Kyle H., aged 9.
Copyright 2014 Brenda Davis Harsham
Note: Thanks to Janna at Complexity through Joy for the kind permission for use of her snow monster.
The church is near but the road is all ice; the tavern is far but I’ll walk very carefully. Russian Proverb
five brothers standing
together against all storms
facing the new year
letting go differences
roots intertwined for all time
Copyright 2014 Brenda Davis Harsham
Note: Tanka is defined in Oak Leak Tanka.
The church is near but the road is all ice;
the tavern is far but I’ll walk very carefully.
Russian Proverb
Years ago, I was working for a minimal salary. My net pay barely covered the expenses of professional clothing, commuting, food and rent. I worked very hard the first year, trying to be the perfect employee, working quickly, seeking extra work, hoping I would earn a big raise. I slid sideways into debt when my car was totaled in an accident and my cat needed expensive medicine.
Friendly Fairy Tales 