Stall: A Haiku Quartet

clouds glide in 
like a naval armada,
only to loiter.

the sky is gray,
but no rain comes --
just the threat.

the threat wears thin --
unheeded until
thunder cracks!

a man shakes his fist
at the dense clouds:
a torrent falls.

Mount Zhongnan [终南山] by Wang Wei [王维] [w/ Audio]

Taiyi stretches toward heaven;
Linked mountains reach into the sea.
Looking back, white clouds coalesce;
In the mist, the mist can't be seen.
A ridge is a boundary of worlds:
Cloudy or clear; with - or sans - tree.
In need of lodging for the night,
I ask the woodsman cross river from me.

This is poem #118 of the 300 Tang Poems [唐诗三百首.] The original in Simplified Chinese is:

太乙近天都, 连山接海隅。
白云回望合, 青霭入看无。
分野中峰变, 阴晴众壑殊。
欲投人处宿, 隔水问樵夫。

Secondary Feeders [Haiku]

after harvest
cows stubble graze, &
egrets hunt in the wake.

DAILY PHOTO: Cliff

Image

Ceiling’s Edge [Haiku]

cloud ceiling,
almost touched atop a hill,
parts in the distance.

Delta Drift [Haiku]

prow points seaward 
in widening channel;
geese pass overhead.

DAILY PHOTO: Baku Highrises

Spring Pasture [Haiku]

Spring’s arrival
brings lush, green grass;
livestock keeps it trim.

DAILY PHOTO: Revenue Survey Offices, Bangalore

Camouflage [Senryū]

tree, wrapped in vines,
shape broken & trunk hidden;
an attempt to blend?