the butterfly
knows no upside-down, only
where the flowers are.
Right-Side-Down [Haiku]
Reply
DAILY PHOTO: Scenes from Happy Valley Buddhist Monastery (a.k.a. Shedup Choepelling Gompa)
“Spritual” [Poetry Style #13 (精神)] by Sikong Tu [w/ Audio]
All wish to return,
Hoping others will come:
A clear water ride
Where strange flowers bud,
And lime-green parrots fly
The willows, to and from --
The mountain folk arrive
Deep bowls fill with wine...
To take a life beyond
And not end in ash,
But still be of nature;
Who's up to that task?
NOTE: The late Tang Dynasty poet, Sikong Tu (a.k.a. Ssŭ-k‘ung T‘u,) wrote an ars poetica entitled Twenty-Four Styles of Poetry. It presents twenty-four poems that are each in a different tone, reflecting varied concepts from Taoist philosophy and aesthetics. Above is a crude translation of the thirteenth of the twenty-four poems. This poem’s Chinese title is 精神, and it has been translated as: “Essential,” “Animal Spirits,” and “Spirit.”
Share on Facebook, Twitter, Email, etc.
PROMPT: Excited
Tell us about the last thing you got excited about.
Going for a walk this morning. (I’m like a dog that way…. except I don’t pee during my walks… usually.)
Share on Facebook, Twitter, Email, etc.
BOOKS: “Sweet Tooth, Vol. 2: In Captivity” by Jeff Lemire
Sweet Tooth, Vol. 2: In Captivity by Jeff LemireMy rating: 5 of 5 stars
Publisher’s Site
This volume interweaves the continuing stories of Gus and Jepperd, separated at the end of the debut volume. As outlandish as this story might seem, human-animal hybrid babies and all, the basic forces that drive the story are straightforward and relatable. Jepperd’s is essentially a love story as he attempts to do right by his wife in a post-pandemic dystopian world. Gus, having been motivated by a desire for new adventure in the first volume, just wants to get home now that he has confronted the fundamental crumminess of the human world.
While this volume is largely filling in the backstories of the two main characters, it does so skillfully through a mix of flashback and current timeline events that advance the story. It certainly has me hooked to learn more about these characters.
I found this story to be emotionally moving and compelling and would highly recommend it for comic book readers.
View all my reviews
Share on Facebook, Twitter, Email, etc.
Nature Reclaims [Lyric Poem]
All it takes is one thin crack, and
A fine flurry of blowing seed.
And nature takes back all that land --
Wall-to-wall with growing weeds.
Share on Facebook, Twitter, Email, etc.
DAILY PHOTO: Rainy Day Labors
Image
Share on Facebook, Twitter, Email, etc.
BOOKS: “Color” by Countee Cullen
Color by Countee CullenMy rating: 5 of 5 stars
Available on Project Gutenberg
This excellent collection of lyric poetry is by one of the greats of the Harlem Rennaissance. The poems include a range of forms and sizes from single quatrain epitaphs to poems of several pages, with those in between (including a number of sonnets) being most common. Like Dickinson, Cullen had a fondness for common meter (a.k.a. hymn meter,) and it is prevalent throughout. The topics include serious matters, such as race and death, but there is no lack of whimsicality within these pages.
The book is divided into four sections: “Color,” “Epitaphs,” “For Love’s Sake,” and “Varia.” The first is the most serious of tone. (Interestingly, the epitaphs and other poems on death often take a lighthearted, even humorous, tone.)
I’d highly recommend this collection for poetry readers. It’s fun to read, and the poems are skillfully crafted.
View all my reviews
Share on Facebook, Twitter, Email, etc.
“The Wise” by Countee Cullen [w/ Audio]
(For Alain Loch)
Dead men are wisest, for they know
How far the roots of flowers go,
How long a seed must rot to grow.
Dead men alone bear frost and rain
On throbless heart and heatless brain,
And feel no stir of joy or pain.
Dead men alone are satiate;
They sleep and dream and have no weight,
To curb their rest, of love or hate.
Strange, men should flee their company,
Or think me strange who long to be
Wrapped in their cool immunity.
Share on Facebook, Twitter, Email, etc.
Death of a Stout Tree [Common Meter]
Oh, those high waters are rising;
They've spilled their banks in flood,
Slouching toward the Tree of Life:
Its roots immersed in mud.
That tree is just so stout & straight --
Unambitious of height --
Not man nor beast could knock it down,
Regardless of their might.
But just a long soak of its roots --
A gift of too much good --
And then a well-timed gust of wind
Will turn that tree to wood.
Tiger Riding for Beginners 