(2013)
I wrote this tanka about the month of October.
Delicate surprise From behind blind-folded eyes That glint of glitter Sprinkle, sprinkle, floating down We reach out, we grasp, we drink
Seasonal ill’n Ado, ado, soft achoos Cool wind seeps through me
Busy decisions Like an endless moon cycle Such a waxing life
Such sweet aroma Breathe in the color deeply Exhale precious wafts Crisp Citric spiral peelings, Fill my compost disposal
A midst cold classrooms Seemingly short dialect Audio-connect Slowly frozen hearts will drip As conversations bubble
Life’s obligations A daunting sea of turmoil With crest after crest I’ll hide in this briny shell Till the tide forgets my name
Self-expressional Crooked poster on the wall Self-intentional Will you shatter, will you fall? Who will fix your frame of old?
The end of the road A distance we all travel Darkness as moonlight Spreads over stone and flowers That litter our path ahead
Flickering between The realms of light and shadow Why not close the shades? Sleep’s alluring charm welcomes Despite such early hours!
Distractions of youth Parade like bright spring flowers Always on the mind Entangling my weak heart To the land of mud and ice
To grasp at the root This longing for the seasons Hidden deep, deep down To say it’s just “Natural,” Would only scratch the leaf-tops
I pray for the day When my mind is clear Silence, sweet silence Schemes and impulses forgone To live without a shadow
Scattering shy leaves Skittering down two by two In Fall’s breeze they sink Forming such a golden path Blind-folded hearts can follow
Lofting lazily Enter murky depths of feel Quivering eyelids Two heavy from the weight of The thoughts that lead me astray
The darkest of nights It is on these nights I turn To these keys, clicking Fervently beyond reason Behind safely shadowed doors
