Vancouver’s Stanley Parkis well known for their Cherry trees that were given as a gift from Japan but Toronto, High Park hosts also such a gift from Japan in 1959, having received 2000 trees. Check here, for the History of Sakura; Sakura Hanami is the Japanese translation for cherry blossom viewing or flower viewing. Click here to see the Sakura Watch at High Park 2014. The photos are exquisite!
After enjoying a nice vegan dinner with my colleague the other night, I noticed the pink sky at the end of our street on our way back to work. I checked the time, and I had 8 minutes left before I had to get back to work on the phone lines. So I rushed up the elevator to the ninth floor, wobbled up the 20 steps that lead to the rooftop and witnessed another amazing concert of pastels shimmering in the sky.
I sat in awe silently for a moment. I knew I would not capture this perfection with my camera. And then I started playing with the settings. I tried “sunset” first, then “beauty” and lastly just natural setting…zooming now and then until I saw a plan to my right flying quickly just above the sun setting. I clicked a few times to capture this because usually planes come out fuzzy but not this time. I was quite pleased.
I had three minutes left and knew I had to run down to get to work on time and missed that last dip below the skyline…where you no longer see any sign of the sun. Then for another five to ten minutes the changing of colours, shades getting darker and more stunning. Oh, well, another time…in a few weeks time, my dinner break will coincide with a complete sunset…yes, the days will be shortening more and more…do not want to think of that yet.
Since I have chosen un nom de plume for my blogspot which will hold only short form poetry, I am thinking it would be a good idea to sign my short forms here as well with Tournesol. So here goes my first summer series of thoughts when I had so much time to scribble in my notebook being, still, SANS internet. It is not so bad actually. I write, sneak peek on my phone for prompts and write offline. But I do miss reading my friends who write so beautifully and inspire me.But for summer, it is not a bad idea…it gives me time to savour summer…sit in a park and just soak up the entire moment, trees, flowers, children playing, lovers sitting side by side with glazed eyes…
summer love
painfully overrated
September blues.
summer’s breeze
forsake unrequited love
nakedness sighs
I do miss walking along an ocean beach. We are only a six-hour drive from Old Orchard, Maine and lately I have been reminiscing about times I went camping there as a teenager with my parents. I also enjoyed vacations as an adult with my husband in Prince Edward Island at Twin Shores…it felt like we owned the beach it was so secluded and quiet. I enjoyed lobsters camping and come to think of it, I have never eaten lobster in a restaurant…only camping.
ocean salt air
savouring lobster tails
melted butter dips
low tide at twilight
moon beams guide the way
skinny dipping
A few nights ago, I was surprised to hear the crickets calling since I don’t live in the country and it was near the bus terminal but I suppose they had to warn us of the hot muggy night we were having. Thank you very much, crickets, my body felt it just fine!
But it did remind me of times sitting out on our porch at our first home, the children in bed surrounded by three mountains (not huge ones, mind you, but still…)
crickets’ night concert
fanning on moonlit porch
hum the blues
Last week I enjoyed my first campfire in a long time. I usually sit out at my cousin`s backyard summers when I visit his family in Oakville. So it was a lovely treat to sit outside with my son and his two dogs, Heidi is a German Shepherd and Maya is a Golden…both are adorable. I’ve posted them in the past when pet sitting.
backyard fire
bowing to a busy day
toasting marshmallows
Now a wood`s party is something I never really experienced but I know that many teenagers do…
(c) Clr – Tournesol ’14
wood’s bonfire
strumming a guitar
smoking weed
night extends
shrill of harmonica
honky-tonk blues
(c) Clr – Tournesol ’14
croon sleepily
red embers smother
German Shepherd snores.
What a treat to be sipping my cappucinno with WiFi and blogging.
I rarely have the opportunity or privilege (I should really say) of dining with a colleague from work. Since we work on a 24 hour crisis line, our breaks are never together. Yesterday by chance, it was. I introduced my friend to my favourite vegan restaurant, The Green Panther. I have written about this place before and even taken photos with my notebook next to my plate of yummy falafel.
My friend was telling me about how she had gone out for a run the other day and came back with bites on her legs and it swelled tremendously within a short time. The next day when the swelling went down, she noticed 4 little stingers all in a row by a very hungry wasp.
After reading Chevrefeuille ‘s lovely introduction to Carpe Diem’s prompt today #523 Basho (5), ”How Rare!”, I thought of my friend’s running incident.
I also enjoyed the background of Kristjaan’s blog name. Honeysuckle was his seasonword chosen in his very first verse 25 years ago. Translated into French that would be Chevrefeuille and the rest is history.
That inspired me to choose a title for my Blogspot blog. I had originally chosen le jardin de Cher and then I thought about flowers that I love. Daisies are my favourite because they are also easy to purchase any time of year. But I have always loved sunflowers. I remember the giant sunflowers that grew next to our garden shed at our family home when my children were little. Golly!! They were ginormous! And so with jardin still as the theme of my “short form poetry” blog, I chose Tournesol dans un jardin…so Tournesol will be my nom de plume on that blog. Merci, Kristjaan, for the inspiration!
July 11th midnight we left Montreal via bus towards Toronto. This would be a 6 hour trip or shorter depending on traffic and mostly summer construction on Highway 401, the most boring highway that I know. That is why I take a bus or train when travelling alone, for by car, the risk of falling asleep at the wheel hypnotized by the same white line on black asphalt is too dangerous.
I felt like I was chasing the moon tonight, walking towards the bus terminal. I tried to take a few pictures but my camera could not do it justice. It shone so bright and it looked like a tiny spec on my camera.
On the bus I would see glimpses of the moon on the right and when I aimed my camera, the bus turned slightly and it was not to the left. I was sitting on the right side way in the front on the top deck of this double-decker Megabus. Fortunately I had two seats, so I could stretch my long legs. My tablet was on most of the ride to occupy my busy mind. I was lucky if I slept an hour and now I know that it may have been due to the “almost” full moon.
For hours the white glow teased me going from the right of my window and then to the left where I could l could not see as well, then whoosh, it would disappear. The more we approached mid morning around 3 a.m.
Moon, I saw you,
swell in size
inflamed and boisterous
daring and glorious
you shine like a star
you acquiesce afar
finally with unrest
you shine ahead
towards the West
the lower you get
the larger you’ve set
into a golden lantern
it’s 3am, cannot sleep
your energy fills me
that beaming glow
as travellers follow
all through the night
you’re glowing light
keeps us alert, safe
you’ll not abandon
us until early dawn
that golden star
we’ll not see yet
as we head West
just feel the glow
from the East
as you, moon,
shall seek rest.
This was Thursday morning that I saw this “almost full moon” on my bus ride; and on Saturday the moon was at its fullest and there was a great celebration at the retreat where I was, called The Guru Purnima. We waited with anticipation for the celebration until the wee hours of the night (5am. more precisely) In the meantime, I went out for a walk and took a few photos of the full moon and my mind wandered…
(c) clr 2014-07-13
(haiku)
hot summer night
waves crash on the beach
guided by moon beams
+
lovers embrace
hide behind bushes
bright moon glow
(c) Cheryl-Lynn 2014-07-19
Although this prompt is to write about the full moon in the Fall or Winter, I had these notes from my trip I felt fit so well with the mood of the full moon. You can see more explanations, Chèvrefeuille so graciously and eloquently gives at Carpe Diem #517 Shiki (3), “reeds tremble”
At Carpe Diem Haiku Kai, our task was to take Basho’s “The Old-Lady Cherry” and add two lines in approximately 7-7 for tan renga. Here is the original poem and chèvrefeuille’s example:
Tournesol dans un Jardin 
