Stream Toll [Kyōka]

even a stream
charges a toll, and
thwarts cheaters.
step on stone: slip & fall;
sink calf deep: you may pass.

Gravitational Exploitation [Haiku]

the stream carries sand,
dropping it in a broad pool,
clueless of its work.

Heat Beating [Haiku]

sitting on a rock,
 feet dangling in the stream, 
  thwarting summer heat.

Unbudged [Haiku]

moss-covered limbs
 break the water's surface,
  unmoved by the flow.  

Decisions, Decisions… [Tanka]

the floating leaf
chooses its path around
the island
by not choosing a path
around the island.

DAILY PHOTO: Small Falls

Fluid Movement [Haiku]

floating downstream,
 moving unpredictably:
  a dry leaf. 

Fish Drift Relativity [Haiku]

"the fish's world
 is always in drift,"
  thinks I, from the bank.

The Churn [Free Verse]

The water churns --
   no smooth laminar flow.

Each molecule fights its way
   down the mountain. 

Sloshing up into evaporation, or
    dragged, swirling, across 
     the rocky bottom.

This is no mighty, muddy river
    in a gentle glide.

It's pretty chaos;
    just the kind I'm used to.

Shallow Water [Haiku]

a shallow stream,
 texture everchanging,
  glazes the forest floor.