clouds break up;
light shifts toward
wildflower patch.
Shadow Flowers [Haiku]
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Tag Archives: poetry
Koi Dance [Haiku]
“It might be lonlier” (405) by Emily Dickinson [w/ Audio]
It might be lonelier
Without the Loneliness —
I'm so accustomed to my Fate —
Perhaps the Other — Peace —
Would interrupt the Dark —
And crowd the little Room —
Too scant — by Cubits — to contain
The Sacrament — of Him —
I am not used to Hope —
It might intrude upon —
Its sweet parade — blaspheme the place —
Ordained to Suffering —
It might be easier
To fail — with Land in Sight —
Than gain — My Blue Peninsula —
To perish — of Delight —
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“Everyone’s Journey” by Sōgi [w/ Audio]
Everyone's journey
through this world is the same,
so I won't complain.
Here on the plains of Nasu,
I place my trust in the dew.
NOTE: This translation by Sam Hamill in The Poetry of Zen (2004) Boston: Shambhala, p. 131.
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“A face devoid of love or grace” (1711) by Emily Dickinson [w/ Audio]
A face devoid of love or grace,
A hateful, hard, successful face,
A face with which a stone
Would feel as thoroughly at ease
As were they old acquaintances —
First time together thrown.
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“Inspired by Late Spring” by Ye Cai [w/ Audio]
Sparrows cast on my desk their shadows in pair,
And willow down falls in my inkstone here and there.
Sitting by the window, I read the Book of Change,
Not knowing when has Spring gone, I only feel strange.
Note: This is the joint translation of Xu Yuanchong and Xu Ming found in the Golden Treasury of Quatrains and Octaves (a Bilingual edition of 千家诗 “Thousands of Poems”) on which they collaborated (i.e. China Publishing Group: Beijing (2008) p. 40)
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Cold Spring [Haiku]
Syllables Matter [Lyric Poem]
Sometimes the syllables matter:
It meant to say, “Stow cars away
Someplace that is not here.”
But just one unfortunate break
Is all it takes to make it say:
“Middling Monarchs are Banned.”
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“His steady sails he never furls” by Henry David Thoreau [w/ Audio]
His steady sails he never furls
At any time o' year,
And perching now on Winter's curls,
He whistles in his ear
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Balance [Haiku]
one-legged crow squats
to explode into flight;
false alarm!
Tiger Riding for Beginners 