screaming in their heads
echoes of thunder in their sleep
deceived by nations
on alert for their children
skipping on a hidden shell
©Tournesol’17/02/12
Category: tanka
spiritual way (tanka)
on the rooftop
in quiet contemplation
sun bows gracefully
wishing love and happiness
shanti shanti shanti
©Tournesol’17/02/05
She likes starting and ending her day wishing peace and happiness worldwide.
Carpe Diem Haiku Kai – Namaste
Lokah Samasta Sukhino Bhavantu
winter walk (Daily Moments, Feb. 3, 2017)
slow afternoon walk
sparkling diamonds on the snow
crunch echoes
finally reach the Métro
and then the sky blushed
©Tournesol’17/02/03
Daily moments – winter walk February 3, 2017
one moment in time (haibun)
We’ve come to the end of The Pilgrimage, our host, Chèvrefeuille has generously guided us through this journey on the Road to Santiago. Paulo found his sword at the right moment.
[…]”…And when I think about it, I guess it is true that people always arrive at the right moment at the place where someone awaits them.” […] (Source: The Pilgrimage by Paulo Coelho)
Our host writes:
the sound of rain
on young leaves of Ivy
I bow my head
© Chèvrefeuille
******************************
They spent the day in the sun planting seeds of various vegetables. Bent over with their straw hats, mother with her white Ralph Lauren sunglasses, the little three year old in her polka dot sundress and heart shaped sunglasses.
“Ah phew! That’s sure a lot of vegetables, Mommy!”
She beamed at her little helper, “Come, sweetheart, let’s sit in the shade. I`ll bring you a Popsicle.”
Sitting under the old maple tree, her chin in her chubby hand, staring at the garden for a long moment, she asked, “Mommy, when will the green beans start growing?”
“It will take time, sweetheart, about sixty sleeps depending on the weather.”
Obvious disappointment painted on her sun kissed face; she quickly lost interest and ran to play in the sandbox.
rose tipped buds
tender beginnings
nature’s way
one moment in time
coming to flower
©Tournesol’1702/01
the ear sees (haibun)
An interesting exercise Petrus gives to Paulo especially when he makes him close his eyes to listen to him tell a story. Not for a moment can he open his eyes and he can smell the oil from the old locomotive where they are sitting…and he listens.
When I think of listening, I cannot help but be reminded of the work I do. Seventeen years ago, I would strain my ears to listen to a caller tell his story. The strain was not to hear the words, it was the body language I was used to that now I had to learn to hear it through the phone. Within months, my hearing became sharper and grew a lense to see. I could hear the frown and sadness at the beginning of a phone call and after a long time…minutes or hours, I could hear an image of this person who had transformed at the end of the call.
tears echo
soft whimpering
telling a tale
telling a tale
a story long overdue
that slow release
as she says goodnight
I can hear a smile
©Tournesol’17/01/29
spellbound (tanka)
We are inspired by the photo above to continue on the Road to Santiago:
spellbound
the road to Santiago
along mountain sides
roused by the clunk of stones
more pilgrims leave their mark
©Tournesol’17/01/29
CDHK The Pilgrimage – a Milestone marker – Imagine this
a moment in time (tanka)
I love this section of the book where Paulo Coelho not only describes the picturesque scene in the mountain but all the activity, a shepherd, the sheep and the old castle.
I remember reading where Petrus tells Paulo, The House of the Lord has many mansions and it goes on to elaborate the Knights Templar towards the turn of the fourteenth century believed in putting a stop to the fight and division of the three religions of that time, Islam, Christianity and Judaism. When I read this I was not surprised these knights were arrested under false pretenses for the world (King and Pope) were certainly not ready to accept such a great idea…way too threatening. And yet, eight centuries later and we are still far from that utopic idea. Greed, vengeance and entitlement get muddled in the mix. A recent unnamed leader has fallen from the path.
{…}“Their spiritual devotion, in turn, had allowed the Knights Templar to understand the great truth that Petrus had quoted the night before: that the house of the Lord has many mansions. They sought to put an end to religious conflict and to unite the main monotheistic religions of the time: Christian, Jewish, and Islamic. Their chapels were built with the rounded cupola of the Judaic temples of Solomon, the octagonal walls of the Arab mosques, and the naves that were typical of Christian churches.”{…} (Source: The Pilgrimage, Paulo Coelho)
This is the scene our host has given to us for inspiration:
[…] “We arrived one afternoon at the ruins of an old castle of the Order of the Knights Templar. We sat down to rest, and while Petrus smoked his usual cigarette, I drank a bit of the wine leftover from lunch. I studied the view that surrounded us: a few peasant houses, the tower of the castle, the undulating fields ready for sowing. To my right appeared a shepherd, guiding his flock past the walls of the castle, bound for home. The sky was red, and the dust raised by the animals blurred the view, making it look like a dream or a magic vision. The shepherd waved to us, and we waved back. The sheep passed in front of us and continued down the road. …. It was an impressive scene … “ […] (Source: The Pilgrimage by Paulo Coelho)
on the road
life plays out in a blur
past to present
beauty in the making
a promising future
I think Petrus believed eventually there is hope for a future of peace in a world accepting the Lord’s many mansions. I would like to think that too, if only, for the purpose of this exercise.
©Tournesol’17/01/29
CDHK – The Pilgrimage – that moment
safe on the road (tanka)
savouring
sheltered in your arms
that afterglow
led by your light
my golden star
©Tournesol’17/01/28
moment of grace (haibun)
the dreamer
never dreaming
to live a dream
leaving everyone else
behind in the future
long meadow
is too short to hold
the emptiness
of leaving a family
longing for their faces
high in the mountains
suspended over the valley
even spirits
smoothing the paths
toe to heel, toe to heel
ocean breezes
a coolness blowing inland
my message
meets hers mid-air
the tie that binds
© Jane Reichhold (taken from: She Alone)
Jane’s book “She Alone” describes a trip her daughter, Heidi, made into the Sierra Mountains. Between the stories Jane created tanka like the ones above.
Here is my haibun inspired by her masterpiece.
******************************
They decided to go on a hike up Owl’s Head . She knew her daughter was not an athletic type. But one thing they both had in common, appreciating the clean air of the forest. It would just be a bit more tiresome to savour it on the mountain…was it all worth it, she wondered, hearing her daughter grumble?
panting up the slope
soft breeze whistles
through the trees
awestruck suddenly
a doe freezes on their trail
tender moment
between mother and daughter
holding their gaze
speaking
would have been redundant
lightheaded
presence of Abenaki spirit
circling at the peak
brush of white feathers
snowy owl flaps its wings
©Tournesol’17/01/27
CDHK
summertime (haibun)
They felt like lovers again for twenty four hours. The children were at their Nanny’s and so they took advantage of the sunny day with that steady breeze from the South. Sailing in the morning was heaven. The breeze picked up in the afternoon, so they suited up with their trapeze harnesses for an afternoon of pure exciting bliss. They had smeared their bodies with sun block but she ran into a surprise that evening.
sailing rendezvous
babe swaddled in her harness
sun kissed face
painfully learns the hard way
her lips were on fire!
It was only then, she discovered Zinc clear sunscreen SPF 50 for lips was the wise choice for sailors and lifeguards. They still went to Old Montreal for a late night dinner, walking on the cobblestone streets and when the fire started to be unmanageable, he searched among pharmacies to give her relief.
cooling her lips
serves her ice chips all night long
warming her heart
© Tournesol’17/01/26
Carpe Diem #1132 ‘The wrong answer will indicate the right one.’ (Petrus)
I was going to share Kiss of Fire by Louis Armstrong, but I discovered this singer last week and Summertime seems appropriate for this haibun. I hope you will enjoy Andrea Motis as much as I do
Tournesol dans un Jardin 
