Red carpet festival (haibun – haiga)

She decided to walk to her voting station today rather than take a bus. The sky was such a vibrant blue, so intense and the midday sun added softness. It was chilly at 6 degrees C but dressed in layers, a good scarf, her comfy Doc Martens and sunglasses she was in her own world. Now and then she would pear over her glasses to see the real colour of the sky because through her glasses is was dark blue turquoise. That reminded her when she went to St-Marten…thoughts that rose the temperature slightly, or was it the brisk speed of her walk?

Checking the time, she knew she had time to walk the 30 minute walk and hopefully there would not be a line up at the polls giving her time to catch the bus to get to work. She had to stop a moment to take photos of the fallen leaves. She was kicking herself for not leaving earlier to walk slower to take in the beautiful autumn colours; suddenly her boots crunched on a red carpet laid out just for her. It felt like a festival of remembrance.

peeling arms,
tokens of burning passions
summer’s past

CDHK

Hunter’s Moon (troiku)

clucking from the old barn
wolf howls at Hunter’s moon
hens fall silent

clucking from the old barn
winner takes all
a cocky tom struts

wolf howls at Hunter’s moon
hush of the forest
rustling leaves taunt

hens fall silent
butcher does a head count,
Thanksgiving

Haiku Horizons “silent”

Plop interuptus (haiku)

Our host at Heeding Haiku with Chèvrefeuille at MindLoveMiserysMenagerie has asked us to rewrite this famous haiku by the master, Matsuo Basho

furu ike ya / kawazu tobi komu / mizu no oto

old pond
a frog jumps into
the sound of water

A description of the surroundings when Basho experienced this moment, by the old pond were Japanese yellow roses (yamabuki) growing around the pond. Here is my rewrite.

Yamabuki (Yellow Roses, Kerria Japonica)

scent of roses
by the old pond
frog plops

Sensual Feeling (Cascade – haibun – Troiku)

( Cascade )

music feeds the soul and moves the body
instigating spells on her existence
rhythm and blues sink into her essence
that’s when she got a taste of true freedom

searching in all the wrong places for release
it’s always been there, free for the taking
cannot be purchased in stores or on-line
music feeds the soul and moves the body

she was in limbo for too many years
fighting urges to act impulsively
until she explored deep into her soul
instigating spells on her existence

she found herself one lonely afternoon
taking out her old turntable she played
Stevie Wonder and Smokey Robinson
rhythm and blues sink into her essence

it felt like being possessed by these tunes
her body moved mindlessly and freely
swayed to Marvin Gaye’s Sexual Healing
that’s when she got a taste of true freedom

********************************************************************

A Cascade reminds me a bit of a Troiku, so I also added the sense of “freedom” one gets from dancing to being midst nature and all its beauty with a Troiku.

(Haibun – troiku)

Nature offers such freedom that dance does liberating the soul, reacquainting with one’s inner child and admiring as if seeing for the first time. Before such liberation, one walks around with jaded lenses. What a joy to “see” again the vibrant colours and experiences of each season.

(Troiku)

nature’s charm
grace of a butterfly
golden blossoms sigh

nature’s charm
seduced the lonely woman
long last – awakened

grace of a butterfly
tickled the child within
made her gasp

golden blossoms sigh
daisies coo – Pick Me, Pick Me
tranquil bliss

OctPoWriMo #17

“Dance, when you’re broken open. Dance, if you’ve torn the bandage off. Dance in the middle of the fighting. Dance in your blood. Dance when you’re perfectly free.” ― Rumi

Home of Kali, Krishna, Amma (haiga – haiku)

With only 24 hours of free rides up in the sky, I choose India. I’d get to a little fishing village in Kerala, India and stay at Amritapuri Ashram with Amma (Mata Amritanandamayi) and her devotees.

under autumn leaves
dreams of flying far away
home of Krishna

home of Krishna
fishing village by the sea
Amma sings

Amma sings
even snakes bow in honour
petals on her feet

OctPoWriMo #15 – Conquer the world

when all the guests leave (Troiku)

boisterous energy
guests finally take their leave
silence is deafening

boisterous energy
contagious laughter
warms her heart

guests finally take their leave
savours cup of camomile
trace of loneliness

silence is deafening
conversations in her mind
mute the quiet

CPHK – Special

Family Thanksgiving (haibun)

She loves Thanksgiving. It is a time for her adult children and their partners, her grandsons and even the children’s father to come together. She prepares food for days; sets up the guest room for the boys to play and have fun while the adults eat much slower as they talk of this and that that are of no interest to young boys.

It is better than Christmas because there is no pressure of gift giving and commercialization and the roads are still clean of any snow or ice. It is simply a wonderful meal with many the season’s harvest, pumpkin, squash, yams, cabbage and apples including wine from les Vignoble du Marathonien in Havelock in the Eastern Townships. They are all thankful for this nice long weekend break in the middle of autumn, time to drive through hilly roads admiring the mountains with splashes of red, yellow and amber.

She is the cook and hostess serving one and all. Adults joking and enjoying each other`s company, but the children know who the real life of the party is…

lifting their glasses,
voices rise with laughter
winks at her grandsons

Carpe Diem Special Tom D’Evelyn’s essay BASHO

Child’s Play (haibun)

Cloudfront – St Patrick’s Day Parade – Montreal

The first St-Patrick`s Day parade was celebrated in Montreal in 1759, three years before the start of New York’s well-known parade, in 1762. Rain or shine, snow or sleet, the parade has run consecutively each year since 1824. My great grandfather arrived from Ballybunion, Ireland in Montreal after the Great Famine and was one of the organizers of the St-Patrick’s Day Parade.

It has also been voted by the National Geographic one of the top 10 St. Patrick`s Day celebrations in the world! This does not surprise me. St-Patrick’s Day celebrations are times when politics are set aside and the French and English speaking people parade in the streets of Montreal, Irish pubs are filled with revellers singing, dancing and drinking various ales and draughts …of course there is a lot of green beer too; servers are dressed in costumes dated back to the 19^th century.

Montréal St-Patrick's Basilica — Montral St-Patrick’s Basilica

St-Patrick`s Basilica in Montréal opened on March 17^th in 1847 and this church has an even more significant meaning to me as my father’s cousin, Father Michael O’Donnell gave his first mass at St-Patrick’s Baslilica in 1979…a very solemn and moving moment for friends and family.

Wikimedia.org (Montreal St-Patrick’s Day Parade

As a young child, St-Patrick’s explanation of the Holy Trinity made so much sense…

Longboat Key News – Real Irish shamrocks in a field

child moves gracefully,
field of three-leaved-grasse
chanting, “three in one!”

CDHK

Resources: Montreal Irish Parade – historian’s corner

National Geographic – top 10 St Patrick’s Day Celebrations

Tourisme-Montréal – 10 Fun Facts

artist’s haven (haibun

Photo credits: Katrin Shumakov at Flickr

I often write about the cherry blossoms at Stanley Park in Vancouver. My first trip there, I met a lovely Japanese couple at the airport on my arrival. It was early April, and they encouraged me to visit Stanley Park, proudly telling me how the Japanese government has donated many cherry trees to Vancouver. I’m so glad they told me and was so enthralled by the beauty of a park situated by the Pacific Ocean, bursting with pale pink flowers throughout the park.

..
I learned later that High Park in Toronto has many cherry trees. “How could I have missed that?” I scold myself, having lived so close to that park for thirteen years. It was only when I moved back to Montreal did I hear of these cherry trees.

cherry blossoms
photoshoot haven,
spring’s promise

Carpe Diem Haiku Kai

Stranger Danger (Krielle – Senryu)

Kyrielle

school bell rings and children smile
on their bikes they ride a mile
stranger lurks around corners
That’s when blood shoots through my veins

on a bus some students hop
dropping close, at a bus stop
stranger’s car stalks close to corners
That’s when blood shoots through my veins

at the same place every day
bus stops, kids go on their way
stranger’s car drives from that corner
That’s when blood shoots through my veins

stranger stops beside a child
asks directions, lies so wild!
child approaches warily
That’s when blood shoots through my veins!

child is trusting and so kind
helping is what’s on his mind,
ruthless stranger smiles inside
That’s when blood shoots through my veins!

a lady comes near the boy
gathers time, she must deploy
Shouting Run Run Run!! to the boy
That’s when blood shoots through my veins!

taking off like a bullet
safely home boy gets to it
screeching tires, stranger flees
That’s when blood shoots through my veins!

(senryû)

deviants roam
innocent prey, they search
stranger danger

stranger danger
warning rhyme of chilling threats
beware of strangers

OctPoWriMo – 10 Wild Writing

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