Poetry ~ Waka
Toronto Photographer: Sara Desjardins
~
whispered, “good night”
caterpillars, I woke up
to butterflies.
~
gently land
on soft petals,
flitting joy.
~
joined together
in the garden, they play house
a brief time.
© Cheryl-Lynn, 2014/06/24
Check out Sara Desjardins’ (photographer) Facebook Page as well.
hot summer night
skinny dipping in the pool
kids sound asleep
toddlers giggling
splashing in the wading pool
naked
end of summer
children rarely seem to have
tan lines.
© Cheryl-Lynn 2014/06/23
As I was waiting for my son to visit last night, I was preparing my late dinner, steak and rapini and grabbed my notebook that I kept on the counter and scribbled these thoughts with fondness.
sorting rapini
watching water boil, missing
bella’s kitchen.
~reminiscing where foul don’t always fly~
hear the geese fly
aiming for cottage country
honk honk honk
In my thirteen years living in Toronto, I made amazing friends and colleagues. I miss many and sorting the rapini while the water was coming to a boil, I could not help but be reminded of that weekend I spent mostly in Bella…Maria’s kitchen. She cooks like most Italian mothers do…with abundance of love. She taught me by having me take part in making a cannelloni from scratch! {the sauce as well} (which I hurried to practice upon arrival on Montreal soil) then prepare a decadent dessert, tiramisu and watching her prepare rapini. My hips do not allow for the dessert too often but rapini is a new favourite that replaces my love for spinach and broccoli…now it reminds me of juicy food and succulent conversations with Maria. Je t’aime bella, cia mia cara.
(haiku)
Ciao Bella!
Maria knows best
feeds bellies with succulence
“mangia mangia”
What I also discovered living in Toronto was that not all feathered species like to fly. Many parks are filled with geese and ducks who are fed all year long…don’t really care to leave this great home. They seem to have taken residence and do not bother to fly south winters.
I still love to look at the geese who usually fly in the shape of a giant V with the leader at the head, coming and going from Canadian towns. However, I found these Toronto geese less intriguing but more intrusive with their pompous attitudes, blocking some majour intersections in the Lakeshore area while motorists had to literally stop while a family led by Queen goose mother decided to cross the street! I suppose it is funny now but in some parks especially at Centre Island, it may not always easy to find a clean spot to lay your red checkered tablecloth for a romantic picnic.
(haiku)
Toronto Geese
roaming,head high
lawns become their giant
chamber pot
© Cheryl-Lynn 2014/06/21
Sitting here
contemplate
not so clear
roles of late
sitting here
I am, I am,
pondering
reflecting
weighing pros
and also cons
making sure
I don’t lose sight
of simple basic principles,
As I think of this tonight
I ask for some guiding light
and grace to finally see
make sure I never
ever ever
lose sight of things that matter.
© Cheryl-Lynn 2014/06/21
This was originally written for a prompt 51 at Pooky Poetry on Loss of Sense but I misunderstood obviously, yet decided to post it anyway.
Thoughts interrupted ( puente)
where shall I go from here
so many paths to choose
don’t want to upset anyone
~life’s filled with so much wonder~
summer festivals begin
jazz, blues, francophonie
time to hop and have some fun
© Cheryl-Lynn 2014/06/20
This is a new poetic form I am trying called the Puente (which means bridge in Spanish), uses a one line “bridge” to connect the first and last stanzas.
– 3 stanzas
– Stanzas 1 & 3 contain different ideas, thoughts
– Stanzas 1 & 3 consist of the same number of lines (meter and/or rhyming up to poet)
– Stanza 2 connects meaning from first to last stanza
– Stanza 2 must be one line enclosed in tildes ( ~ )
– Stanza 2 is the last line of Stanza 1 and first line of Stanza 3
Written for Poetry Jam – June 20 ,2014 Check this link out to see so many amazing poems written for this prompt.
months of drought
scorching sun kills
the soil
~
mother earth weeps our folly
for causing global warming.
© Cheryl-Lynn 2014/06/19
Written for: Heeding Haiku with HA – Consider the Soil
I spent many summers when I was a young child at Kilarney Cottage in Shawbridge (Prevost) Quebec in the Laurentians. My great grand-father O’Donnell immigrated to Montreal from Ballybunion, Ireland before the Irish famine; he built this cottage for his family of seven children.
My great-aunt took over hosting when her father passed. There was a creek where we spent hours hopping from rock to rock until we reached a pool of water and where I first learned how to swim. There was always something to explore in that creek. The cottage had 15 rooms and my great-aunt always hosted many friends and family that came from Montreal. Thank goodness the sound of the creek at night buffered the loud sounds of adults partying until the wee hours.
My aunt (father’s sister) did this painting of the creek years ago and I am so happy I still have this as the photos never gave it justice. This painting is only a glimpse of this long creek that led to mini cascades of water falls and one huge pool of still water. I still hear the sounds of that creek and the ice-cold water, brrrr.
hear the rapids
foaming swirls
creek
~
jumping rocks,
dodging frigid water
splash
~
lazy days
lying on our big rock
fingers paddling
~
fall asleep,
water flowing
white noise.
© Cheryl-Lynn 2014/06/19
June 18, 1982
In memory of Fred,
a great man, friend, husband, father
miss you.
You loved me
like your own,
thank you.
© Cheryl-Lynn 2014/06/18
At Carpe Dieme Haiku Kai, Challenge #501 Strawberry, Kristjaan has written an extensive post on haiku on strawberry and more importantly on the reference to Strawberry Fields Forever and the Beatles. Illustrations, music video and ending with a lovely song that we all remember John Lennon singing “Imagine”. With this theme in mind, here is my humble contribution.
straw hat and sunscreen
squatting under bushes
picking strawberries.
~
children giggling
sunburned without a care
red smeared faces.
~
big pot of redness
controlled temperatures making
strawberry jam.
~
desert delight
angel food cake, whipped cream
fresh picked strawberries.
~
summer nights
they dance under the stars
sip strawberry wine
© Tournesol’15
Isle d’Orléans – Berry picking
~
à l’Isle d’Orléans
les corbeilles se replissent
c’est l’temps des fraises
~
cueillette estival
sous le soleil brulant
fraises juteuses
~
imagine a world
pure air, open minds
love all around.
~
imagine a world
communicating love
and peace.
~
© Tournesol originally written 2014/06/29
Photo credits: Mother nursing infant
Eyes squinting,
squirms with disquiet
howls in concert.
~
wrapped in mother’s arms
nestles to her breast
mouth opens.
© Cheryl-Lynn 2014/06/16
Written for Haiku Horizons “Open”
Tournesol dans un Jardin 
