Fresh Start
The first morning of a new year. Up before everyone else. The room dimly lit by one lamp. The windows still cold and dark. A cup of coffee in my hand. Ahhh …
the silence of the new year
until …
the kids wake up
Inspiration
Walking through the fresh snow, dog in tow, my eyes comb the neighborhood. Thin bamboo trees behind stone walls bend slightly under the weight of their white burden. Tiny snowmen, built by tiny hands, greet me here and there. A crow caws as it flies overhead. Then suddenly, to my left …
clumps of snow
falling from the power lines
new ideas
Influence … Or Something else
Blue deepening into evening. Looking out from the slopes, a vision appears in the distance.
slowly at first
lights come on
down in the valley
Reckoning
Still wanting to know why … to know what happened. But there are only memories now, memories tinted with a present I never imagined.
remembering the day
we bought you that suit
open casket
So Easy
Resolutions. Need I say more?
without realizing
I stray from the path
fitness goals
Clever … Or Not
Just driving … and then. A crane. Is it a construction crane, or a bird crane. Just about anywhere you go in Japan, you’re sure to see both.
lifting my eyes
above the rooftops
a crane
On my way home
Leaving the school parking lot I notice, out of the corner of my eye, withered flowers, tarnished by the dirt of receding snow.
desperately in need
of E.T.’s touch …
winter marigolds
I am so glad you have been back. Your poems are so easy to envision, I take a tiny jump right along with you when the snow falls, my thoughts rebounding from the sound.
The plop of wet snow, such a good sound.
It’s nice to be filling in the blanks a little with haibun again.
I wrote short poems all last year, but I just didn’t have the energy to do anything more than that (take pictures and write prose).
I did make a few submissions and get a couple pieces accepted, but other than that, my time and energy was mostly directed elsewhere.
I once submitted a few short poem to a publication called Hummingbird, and three of them were accepted. But, alas, they were never published because the editor/owner passed away soon after. Other than those, I have not submitted anything.
I'm glad to hear you were still writing this past year. And getting some accepted. Taking pictures and writing is a lot! I feel blessed to read anything from you.
Thank you.
The submission process is not interesting in the least. That’s for sure. But seeing your poems in print with others is very rewarding. It’s fun to see what company you’re in.
I compiled a list of journals that accepts poems shared on social media based on a more comprehensive list of haiku journals someone else made.
Every couple of months I look at it and quickly send about thirty poems in total to three or four journals. I prefer to not think about it too much. For me, just sharing what I’ve written on personal blogs, etc. is satisfying.