On this chilly St Valentine’s morn, Do not give me a rose without a thorn Or even preservèd cherries bittersweet Covered in sugar and chocolate. Do not write a pretty verse inside a card, Not one from Barrett-Browning nor the bard, Or take me to a restaurant for dinner When you know I ‘m trying […]
Witnesses to a Drowning
Halyards scream with wind at waves scribbling on flat canvas of beach and fishwife screech of black-headed gulls fills hissing sails. Egrets erupt from the creek, white against dun marsh, shoved along by the gale, whirling, flickering snowflakes in a frozen sky, peering curiously at the floating face in a blizzard of white lace. Kim […]
Rain Memories
the sound of rain memories splashing against a steamy window Kim M. Russell, 2017 Image found on Pinterest My response to Carpe Diem Only the First Line #25 the sound of rain Chèvrefeuille has re-introduced the special feature, ‘Only the First Line’, in which he gives us ‘only the first line’ of a haiku or […]
Flowery Tea Bowl
a Raku tea bowl cradled in hands – leaves inside blossoming outside Kim M. Russell, 2017 Image found on teatrekker.com My response to Carpe Diem #1153 Raku, Japanese pottery Chèvrefeuille has reminded us of a previous episode about the tea ceremony with a quotation: […] “The tea ceremony is coming to an end. […]
Ghosting
Gnats perform a ghostly slow gavotte, gathering like clouds in shafts of light, weaving, willowing wisps of curling smoke, drifting upwards and into the night: gathering, merging and dissipating, solemnly they join the twilight dance, fickle vampires flirting, mating, malign miasma of the Renaissance. Kim M. Russell, 2017 A swarm of gnats. Photograph: Martin Siepmann/Alamy […]
Screaming in Spring
At crack of sparrow bone,the dawn chorus begins. I moanwhen winged visitors make city spirits soar:birds madly squabbling for a morselfallenfrom the feeder is less a roarand more a scream.Diligent blackbirds turn over voluminous deadleaves by the shedand a robin settles on the narrowchain fence, all atrembleat the zenosyne advance of spring overmorrow. Kim M. Russell, […]
Ikebana
nature’s arrangement maple and chrysanthemum helped by human hands Kim M. Russell, 2017 Image found on Pinterest My response to Carpe Diem #1152 Ikebana I missed the first part of the journey through Japan, the mother of haiku, but I’m picking it up with Ikebana, Japanese floral art. Chèvrefeuille has shared a Facebook group, The World […]
Birds of a Feather
Bellowing blarney in bare twigs, the oncoming storm is accompanied by gravel-rasp of crows and reverberating raven echoes. High above the ridge, the first appears, joined by a second artist of the air, wingtip to wingtip, rolling and diving, tearing apart the leaden shroud of cloud in a monsoon of rain and feathers: birds battling […]
Raindrop
one of many tears trickling down the window pane mirror of heartache Kim M. Russell, 2017 My response to Carpe Diem Namasté the Spiritual Way #2 pilgrimage For this special feature, Chèvrefeuille has given us three days to respond, instead of five as the regular prompts. He has explained that Namasté, the spiritual way, is […]
No Remorse
The master crept into the chamber of his hangdog handmaiden’s shame again and again. There was no remorse. The bruises on body and soul got worse, while his penitent wife battled nightmares in their marital bed, plagued by guilty demons shrouded in shadows of sleep, which was never deep – just a wallowing in the […]
