Bonsai [Haiku]

a bonsai tree:
gnarled & twisted,
yet so strong.

Home Invasion [Haiku]

the heron stares at
the unwitting egret’s back:
unfond of flatmate?

Beyond Eye & Mind [Kyōka]

a bare tree,
beside the stream,
sent leaves to the sea:
how far did they get?
"beyond eye & mind."

“Fragmentary Blue” by Robert Frost [w/ Audio]

Why make so much of fragmentary blue
In here and there a bird, or butterfly,
Or flower, or wearing-stone, or open eye,
When heaven presents in sheets the solid hue?

Since earth is earth, perhaps, not heaven (as yet) ---
Though some savants make earth include the sky;
And blue so far above us comes so high,
It only gives our wish for blue a whet.

Unity [Free Verse]

Many particles to the atom,
Many atoms to the molecule,
Many molecules to the cell,
Many cells to the tissue,
Many tissues to the organ,
Many organs to the system,
Many systems to the organism...

And so it goes,

The many always viewable as
a larger ONE.

Winter Shore [Haiku]

stormy winter day:
seafoam sizzles, its sound lost
to wind and waves.

“The Pond” by Amy Lowell [w/ Audio]

Cold, wet leaves
Floating on moss-coloured water
And the croaking of frogs --
Cracked bell-notes in the twilight.

Cold Stream [Haiku]

Spring flows:
frigid and silt gray --
rush down the mountain.

Rough Edges [Haiku]

in springtime,
wildflowers soften
a stony landscape.

BOOKS: “The Black Riders and Other Lines” by Stephen Crane

The Black Riders and Other LinesThe Black Riders and Other Lines by Stephen Crane
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Project Gutenberg Site

This collection consists of sixty-eight free verse poems, most of which are short (though a small number take up more than a page.) Crane’s poetry is philosophical and often surreal. It’s poetry that’s as likely to spur rumination as it is to evoke intense emotional experience. Some may find Crane’s poetry irreverent because it takes on formal religion and dogmatic groupthink, more generally, but – for others of us – therein lies its appeal.

This collection includes “In the Desert” as well as a number of Crane’s other well-known poems.

I’d highly recommend this collection for poetry readers, particularly those who enjoy poetry of a philosophical bent.

View all my reviews