Tag: Haibun Thinking

Sieste des papillions (haibun)

Sleeping With Butterflies by tincek-marincek
Sleeping With Butterfliesby tincek-marincek at Deviantart

Once upon a time on l’isle des Papillons, there lived a royal family and their minions.  It was a small island.  The king and queen had only one son and they hoped to find a suitable princess for their Fabien.  But Fabien did not like the confines of the castle. It was boring, no children to play with and now that he would soon be sixteen, he had more and more thoughts of escaping this royal prison.

He was permitted to go fishing with Jean Lessard, the cooks brother.  He rarely caught anything but he learned to swim, diving into the ocean and swimming with the fish made him feel a part of nature.  He got to know Jean’s son Philippe. They were the same age, same height and actually looked a lot alike…it was uncanny.  Lately,  Jean and Philippe Lessard were taking a longer route to the beach. They found a beautiful wild garden a few kilometres into the woods.  They would stop for a few hours there and eat their packed lunch Jean’s brother had prepared for the prince. Of course there was too much for one person and the three enjoyed the royal picnic.

golden lilies
tease enchanted harem,
butterflies

One day Fabien was lying down on the grass admiring the daisies and wild lilies in the garden.  Butterflies were resting calmly as if on cue it was their temps de sieste.  Fabien had an idea…he switched clothes with Philippe and decided they would reverse their roles for one month.  Fabien was hoping it would give him the opportunity to enjoy his freedom and get to know some of the other peasants on the island.  Philippe was delighted to have this chance to eat all the delicacies he had never tasted but heard of from his uncle.

And so three weeks went by and Fabien was enjoying his freedom.  He had even met a beautiful girl by the name of Tanya.  They would spend hours at the end of their work day in the fields, in that special garden he had introduced to his new love.

One day Fabien rose early to go for a walk in his favourite garden.  He tripped along the way on a gnarled root bulging on the path and fell to the ground unconscious having hit his head on a rock.   He was there all day still out cold surrounded by fluttering butterflies, hopefully a princess might wake the sleeping beauty.

budding flower
graced by butterfly kiss
beauty rests

© Tournesol ’15

Haibun Thinking January 20th 2015

I know I wrote too long a narrative but got carried away with the photo.

Snow turned to rain (haibun)

Well now despite the dangers of this weather, like over 150,000 residents in this province without hydro, the slippery roads in areas, the flooded streets in others and the dangers of walking on ice, slush, snow covered ice…it really is beautiful.  Hydro went out a few times for a few seconds, but I went to the store (hence the photos I took in the rain) and bought extra D batteries for my flashlight and extra large candle and all is set up in the dining room…just in case. It is when you are prepared these hiccups are least to happen, right?

The photo below is right in front of my apartment building. I kept hearing cracks, thuds, and bams and gazillions flops at once…snow falling from the branches and ice as well for the freezing rain turned to rain.

I still do not have the best waterproof boots…well, yes, they are but not 10 cm high, so I put on plastic bags before putting on my winter waterproof boots and came back home with nice dry feet.  I shall keep this up until the Sorel Boots go on sale.

2015/01/04 19:00
2015/01/04 19:00

 

reality looms
nature violates its course
vision of beauty

© Tournesol’15

Haibun thinking

First snow of this year (haibun)

cropped-header-for-tournesol3.jpg

Finally a snowstorm! That may sound a bit silly but the past two weeks without any snow during the holidays was truly not fun nor was it pretty. It was a dark and dreary for the holidays. I missed the wet snow flakes falling on my face when walking outside Christmas Eve; I missed the snow banks that looked like the wall of a fort protecting me when I walk on the sidewalk. The days are still short although slowly lengthening and the snow is necessary to give light in our wintry world…my world!

Today is Sunday and it has snowed nonstop for the past 36 hours and it’s my first day back at work. I actually look forward to walking to the bus stop and hearing the crunch crunch underfoot.  And tonight will be even nicer as I walk late in the evening in the middle of the road as I know the sidewalks in the city will not be cleared…it’s only Sunday, the city knows they have until Monday morning to get things cleared up on major arteries including sidewalks.

calm after the storm
footsteps echo on fresh snow,
winter wonderland

© Tournesol ’15

Haibun Thinking

farewell my friend (haibun)

Haibun Thinking

Haibun Thinking

LITERARY QUOTE PROMPT

“I declare after all there is no enjoyment like reading!
How much sooner one tires of anything than of a book!”
~ Jane Austen (Pride & Prejudice)

Reading a book is like meeting a new friend. Getting acquainted with their family and friends. Once immersed into a novel, I often get lost in “their world”. Such an escapism for me is rewarding and therapeutic.   It is my brief vacation in another world allowing my mind, heart and soul to detach from realities of life. Every break, every free moment, long bus and metro rides, I get to meet up with my new friend of the week.  Waiting in a line at the grocery store or department store, I pull out my book.  I forget myself so much that I chuckle out loud or weep.

If I am on the last chapter and either on the bus or at a café,  I will put the book down and wait to savour that last chapter quietly at home. I turn each page slowly, reading even slower,  because I am saying goodbye to a friend. Putting down the book, I rewind and fast forward images and memories of my friend’s story before finally saying goodbye.

lost in letters
forming new friends
enchanted am I

savouring
precious last words
the last chapter

melancholy tides,
turning the last page
whispering farewell

(c) Tournesol ’14