DAILY PHOTO: Waterfront

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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。

PROMPT: Season

Daily writing prompt
What is your favorite season of year? Why?

For over a decade now, I’ve lived with two seasons: dry and monsoon. I’d have to give the edge to dry, but the hot bit of the dry season has its own challenges.

Where there are four seasons, I tend to favor those in the Goldilocks Zone (not too hot & not too cold — i.e. Spring & Fall.)

All that being said, as a matter of philosophy, I try my best to avoid having favorites.

Secondary Feeders [Haiku]

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

DAILY PHOTO: Cliff

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Ceiling’s Edge [Haiku]

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

“Not All There” by Robert Frost [w/ Audio]

I turned to speak to God
About the world’s despair;
But to make bad matters worse
I found God wasn’t there.

God turned to speak to me
(Don’t anybody laugh)
God found I wasn’t there—
At least not over half.

PROMPT: Luxury

What’s the one luxury you can’t live without?

Luxuries, by definition, can be done without.

DAILY PHOTO: Two Views of Széchenyi Bridge