tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-177337302024-03-14T08:11:15.895+00:00miso soupIngredients - my published haiku, tanka, haibun and the occasional piece of writing that fits none of those categories.
Alisonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07005806387830212175noreply@blogger.comBlogger630125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17733730.post-74307273971413312942023-08-30T13:40:00.000+01:002023-08-30T13:40:02.910+01:00<p>a flat light<br />under a thunderous sky<br />she tells me<br />her side<br />of the story</p><p>an open window<br />in an empty building<br />a pigeon<br />disappears<br />into the dark</p><p>he talks about<br />hoe he found meaning<br />on a mountain top<br />a gust of wind blows<br />his words away</p><p>Presence Issue 76 July 2023</p>Alisonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07005806387830212175noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17733730.post-31802595588373938782023-08-30T13:36:00.003+01:002023-08-30T13:36:49.659+01:00<p><span style="font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 14.85px;"><br /></span></span></p><p><span style="font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 14.85px;">weak sunshine<br /></span></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 14.85px;">a yellow bucket<br /></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 14.85px;">full of rain</span></p><p><span style="font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 14.85px;">no longer<br />newsworthy<br />misery<br />that just drags on<br />from day to day</span></p><p><span style="font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 14.85px;">Blithe Spirit Vol 33 No 3 August 2023</span></p><p><br /></p><p><span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 14.85px;"><br /></span></p>Alisonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07005806387830212175noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17733730.post-61421961325632777772023-05-12T10:05:00.004+01:002023-05-12T10:07:43.391+01:00<p>morning haze<br />dreaming of a new <br />King Arthur</p><p>restaurant closed<br />a pigeon hunched against<br />the chill</p><p>new year<br />a bag-for-life<br />blows past</p><p>Presence Issue 75 March 2023</p><p> </p><p><br /></p>Alisonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07005806387830212175noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17733730.post-76993767227117836212022-12-19T17:14:00.005+00:002022-12-19T17:14:43.016+00:00<p>guided<br />in somatic practice<br />by a wet dog<br />I give myself<br />a good shake</p><p>Water - The British Haiku Society Members' Anthology 2022</p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p>Alisonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07005806387830212175noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17733730.post-84068333808533293372022-12-19T17:13:00.001+00:002022-12-19T17:13:15.412+00:00<p>a vague sense<br />of something<br />not quite right<br />I check my temperature<br />and the morning news</p><p>most of us<br />can meet her<br />as we always did<br />the woman who forever<br />haunts our dreams</p><p>on my list<br />of things to do<br />a guided meditation<br />on how to<br />just be</p><p>Presence Issue 74 November 2022</p><div><br /></div>Alisonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07005806387830212175noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17733730.post-8815992748879684922022-12-19T17:09:00.002+00:002022-12-19T17:09:35.485+00:00<p>the scarlet cloth<br />of a guard's tunic<br />once in a while<br />a golden thread<br />glints</p><p>high-rise<br />a flock<br />of crows<br />mobbing<br />seagulls</p><p>Blithe Spirit Vol 32 No 4 November 2022</p>Alisonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07005806387830212175noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17733730.post-75318858759405527492022-12-19T17:05:00.007+00:002022-12-19T17:16:44.429+00:00<p>retired<br />I find myself living<br />a cat's life<br />watching the world<br />through half-closed eyes</p><p>walled garden<br />in the evening<br />blackbird song echoes<br />the deepening<br />blue</p><p>another atrocity<br />not knowing<br />what else to do<br />I plant<br />sunflower seeds</p><p>cautiously<br />we begin to talk about it -<br />the unthinkable</p><p>Presence Issue 73 July 2022 </p>Alisonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07005806387830212175noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17733730.post-79965310817593603922022-06-12T18:40:00.003+01:002022-06-12T18:40:29.141+01:00<p>the rowan tree<br />in morning sunshine<br />buds break<br />as if all was well<br />with the world</p><p>I look around<br />my room and wonder<br />would I<br />take this? would I<br />leave this behind?</p><p>sweet grapes<br />and the fresh tang<br />of a persimmon<br />old loves<br />and new</p><p>Blithe Spirit Vol 32 No 2 May 2022</p><p><br /></p>Alisonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07005806387830212175noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17733730.post-26615172510232941972022-03-31T00:19:00.004+01:002022-03-31T00:19:57.870+01:00<p>a high arch<br />where the tree tops meet<br />each time a sense<br />of passage<br />to the other side</p><p>Temple - The British Haiku Society Members' Anthology 2021</p>Alisonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07005806387830212175noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17733730.post-23902824645830504152022-03-31T00:16:00.004+01:002022-03-31T00:20:29.475+01:00<p>half awake<br />holding on<br />for a few more moments<br />to the comfort<br />of a dream</p><p>slicing apples<br />as light fades<br />something soothing<br />in the rhythm<br />of the knife</p><p>the garden<br />that I walked in<br />at noon<br />all the colours gone<br />by mid-afternoon</p><p>Blithe Spirit Vol. 32 No.1 February 2022</p>Alisonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07005806387830212175noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17733730.post-73707541370218926792022-03-31T00:13:00.004+01:002022-03-31T00:13:41.802+01:00<p>that summer<br />long before we knew<br />which of us<br />would not be here<br />to look back</p><p>a box of things<br />that bring back memories<br />the curious<br />cuttings<br />she sent in letters</p><p>ritual cleansing<br />and respectful distance<br />how many years<br />before we forget<br />why we do this?</p><p>Presence Issue 71 November 2021</p><p><br /></p>Alisonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07005806387830212175noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17733730.post-25201403979634515322021-09-03T00:57:00.006+01:002021-11-11T00:53:55.673+00:00<p>passing clouds<br />brighten and darken<br />the morning sky<br />seeming to mock<br />his mood swings</p><p>having washed<br />the dirty dishes<br />I feel<br />so much better<br />about the world</p><p>this summer<br />this distancing<br />sparrow chirps<br />louder than the sound<br />of human voices</p><p>Blithe Spirit Vol 31 Issue 3 August 2021<br /><br /></p><p><br /></p>Alisonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07005806387830212175noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17733730.post-59766500392187528372021-08-15T14:20:00.004+01:002021-08-15T14:22:19.844+01:00<p><span face="Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; font-size: 14.85px;">no likeness<br />in their faces<br />but from behind<br />the shape of their ears<br />is identical<br /><br />children running<br />in spring sunshine<br />the parents walk<br />and their parents<br />sit hidden in the shade<br /></span></p><p><span face="Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; font-size: 14.85px;">the hesitancy<br />in his steps<br />a neighbour says<br />he has aged ten years<br />in the last one</span></p><p><span face="Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; font-size: 14.85px;">Presence 70 July 2021</span></p><p><span face="Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; font-size: 14.85px;"><br /></span></p>Alisonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07005806387830212175noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17733730.post-14183845771898273232021-08-15T14:16:00.003+01:002021-08-15T14:16:34.246+01:00<p><span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 14.85px;">just sitting<br /></span><span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 14.85px;">by an open window<br /></span><span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 14.85px;">my stale thoughts<br /></span><span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 14.85px;">disperse<br /></span><span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 14.85px;">into spring air</span></p><p><span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 14.85px;">a sense of<br /></span><span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 14.85px;">l o o s e n i n g<br />I didn't even realise<br />I had become<br />tense</span></p><p><span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 14.85px;">Blithe Spirit Vol 31 No 2 May 2021</span><span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 14.85px;"><br /><br /></span></p>Alisonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07005806387830212175noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17733730.post-90216709446099296312021-08-15T14:10:00.005+01:002021-08-15T14:10:29.946+01:00<p><span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 14.85px;">the season<br /></span><span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 14.85px;">of stories retold<br /></span><span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 14.85px;">once again<br /></span><span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 14.85px;">our hushed anticipation<br /></span><span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 14.85px;">of the end</span></p><p><span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 14.85px;">a warm wind<br />blowing through trees<br />in full-leaf<br />memories<br />of a far-away sea</span></p><p><span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 14.85px;">cold moon<br />a flatness in the way<br />he says<br />it's fine<br />I'm fine</span></p><p><span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 14.85px;">Presence 69 March 2021</span></p>Alisonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07005806387830212175noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17733730.post-39955894309817524622021-08-15T14:03:00.003+01:002021-08-15T14:11:26.145+01:00<p><span face="Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; font-size: 14.85px;">short days<br /></span><span face="Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; font-size: 14.85px;">and strange dreams<br /></span><span face="Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; font-size: 14.85px;">in the cold earth<br /></span><span face="Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; font-size: 14.85px;">spring bulbs<br /></span><span face="Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; font-size: 14.85px;">also dormant</span></p><p><span face="Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; font-size: 14.85px;">a nightmare<br />until I stop and turn<br />to face my pursuer<br />and find myself looking<br />down an empty street<br /><br />morning fog<br />softening winter trees<br />as I emerge<br />from a dream<br />of clarity<br /></span></p><p><span face="Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; font-size: 14.85px;">Blithe Spirit Vol 31 No 1 February 2021</span></p><p><span face="Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; font-size: 14.85px;"><br /></span></p>Alisonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07005806387830212175noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17733730.post-40948029665880635462021-01-05T10:13:00.009+00:002021-01-05T10:18:11.985+00:00<p><br /></p><p>Living with it</p><p>The snake is still in the house, it hasn't gone away, it could come back into view at any moment.</p><p>The first time he saw it, it was a shock. He froze, glanced around for a weapon or a way out. During the day he found it hard to keep his gaze from going back to it. When it slid into the shadows at night he slept lightly and woke abruptly before dawn.</p><p>As time passed he got used to living with a snake, used to putting his feet up on the couch when relaxing on a hot afternoon, used to checking the shower before stepping in. He only rarely turned on the lamp he had set out to illuminate the dark corners.</p><p>One day he realised that even if there were no snake in the house it would be easy enough for one to slither in from outside, maybe without him even noticing.</p><p>moon shadows<br />the test results come back<br />inconclusive</p><p><br /></p><p>Blithe Spirit Vol 30 No 4 November 2020</p><div><br /></div><div style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: Calibri, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><br /></div>Alisonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07005806387830212175noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17733730.post-6923127952633718332021-01-05T10:11:00.001+00:002021-01-05T10:11:09.358+00:00the old walls -<br />a memorial to those lost<br />in previous plagues<div><br /></div><div>City - The British Haiku Society 30th Anniversary Members' Haiku Anthology 2020<br /><br /></div>Alisonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07005806387830212175noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17733730.post-79666168224410488712021-01-05T10:08:00.008+00:002021-01-05T10:08:36.359+00:00<p>a fledgling gull's<br />persistent cries<br />the city<br />so much quieter<br />this summer</p><p>Blithe Spirit Vol 30 No 4 November 2020</p>Alisonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07005806387830212175noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17733730.post-63350382878663024412021-01-05T10:07:00.001+00:002021-01-05T10:07:20.477+00:00<p>a scattering<br />of downy seeds<br />in the evening air<br />who knows what<br />another year will bring?</p><p>Blithe Spirit Vol 30 No 4 November 2020</p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p>Alisonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07005806387830212175noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17733730.post-12606822015907172392020-09-06T20:09:00.005+01:002020-09-23T16:40:10.199+01:00Why I write both haiku and tanka.<p>This is an article that was originally published in Blithe Spirit in May 2020</p><p><br /></p><span><a name='more'></a></span><p>Why I write both haiku and tanka. </p><p></p><p><span color="" style="font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant-caps: inherit; font-variant-ligatures: inherit; font-weight: inherit;">I have always been drawn to small frames, to a focus on detail, to understatement and to minimalism of all kinds. This is probably a way of compensating for a tendency to over-think! I also have an intuitive sense that the most important things are not as complicated as we often perceive them to be, that the essence of life is utterly simple.</span></p><div style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; border: 0px; color: inherit; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="color: inherit; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant-caps: inherit; font-variant-ligatures: inherit; font-weight: inherit;">When I started trying to write haiku I was most attracted by the </span><i style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; color: inherit; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-variant-caps: inherit; font-variant-ligatures: inherit; font-weight: inherit;">shasei</i><span style="color: inherit; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant-caps: inherit; font-variant-ligatures: inherit; font-weight: inherit;"> or sketch-from-life style, but found it surprisingly difficult to see and record things simply as they are. Then, if I succeeded, I wondered if it was really enough, was it worth saying at all?</span></div><div style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; border: 0px; color: inherit; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><br style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased;" /></div><div style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; border: 0px; color: inherit; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">cold rain<br style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased;" /></div><div style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; border: 0px; color: inherit; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">the greengrocer stacks cabbages<br style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased;" /></div><div style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; border: 0px; color: inherit; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">on cabbages</div><div style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; border: 0px; color: inherit; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><br style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased;" /></div><div style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; border: 0px; color: inherit; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"> (Snapshots #10 2004)<br style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased;" /></div><div style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; border: 0px; color: inherit; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><br style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased;" /></div><div style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; border: 0px; color: inherit; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">I do not think I am alone in this. A totally simple, clear haiku that also has resonance is a significant achievement. In an effort to add interest it can be tempting to put more of ourselves and our personal concerns and opinions in there. Then our own shadow falls across the scene, or we find our focus is on our reflection in the window rather than the view beyond. The ego also has a role in this. We want to feel that we have something to say, that through struggle, physical, intellectual or spiritual, we have found an answer or had an insight that has eluded others.<br style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased;" /></div><div style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; border: 0px; color: inherit; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><br style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased;" /></div><div style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; border: 0px; color: inherit; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">The human tendency to unnecessarily complicate is not just a problem in haiku, of course, it can be found in all our attempts to understand ourselves and our place in the world, up to the highest level in philosophy and religion. However much we are told that it all comes down to love and compassion we still create dogma and fight about it.<br style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased;" /></div><div style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; border: 0px; color: inherit; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><br style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased;" /></div><div style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; border: 0px; color: inherit; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Chinese market -<br style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased;" /></div><div style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; border: 0px; color: inherit; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">a row of small gold buddhas<br style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased;" /></div><div style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; border: 0px; color: inherit; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">share a smile<br style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased;" /></div><div style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; border: 0px; color: inherit; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><br style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased;" /></div><div style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; border: 0px; color: inherit; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">For me writing haiku works in the same way as the type of meditative practice in which you observe the complex tangle of thoughts and feelings that arise in your mind and gently but persistently turn your focus away from them to the breath. In order to write haiku I have to move my focus away from all the self-generated complexity to the simplicity of what is right in front of me. Or, at least, try to.<br style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased;" /></div><div style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; border: 0px; color: inherit; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><br style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased;" /></div><div style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; border: 0px; color: inherit; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">I think it is equally important as an exercise in recognising and accepting just how often such attempts fail, without being disturbed or deterred by that frequent failure. Possibly, in time, becoming conscious of just how easily distracted we are and even being amused when we catch ourselves out.<br style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased;" /></div><div style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; border: 0px; color: inherit; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><br style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased;" /></div><div style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; border: 0px; color: inherit; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">trying to make sense of it<br style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased;" /></div><div style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; border: 0px; color: inherit; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">geometric patterns<br style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased;" /></div><div style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; border: 0px; color: inherit; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">in the carpet </div><div style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; border: 0px; color: inherit; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><br style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased;" /></div><div style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; border: 0px; color: inherit; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"> (The Haiku Foundation Per Diem October 2016)<br style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased;" /></div><div style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; border: 0px; color: inherit; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><br style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased;" /></div><div style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; border: 0px; color: inherit; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">In recent years I have been drawn more and more to tanka, and I am aware of a danger in that for me. Within the slightly larger frame there is more room for the writer's thoughts and feelings to be expressed, but there is also more room for them to intrude resulting in a poem that is either too cerebral or overly emotional.<br style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased;" /></div><div style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; border: 0px; color: inherit; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><br style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased;" /></div><div style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; border: 0px; color: inherit; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">The type of tanka that I would like to succeed in writing share the fundamental simplicity of view that is typical of haiku, they are also based in a quiet, reflective observation.<br style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased;" /></div><div style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; border: 0px; color: inherit; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><br style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased;" /></div><div style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; border: 0px; color: inherit; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">untangling<br style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased;" /></div><div style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; border: 0px; color: inherit; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">a string of lights<br style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased;" /></div><div style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; border: 0px; color: inherit; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">complications<br style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased;" /></div><div style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; border: 0px; color: inherit; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">I didn't have the heart<br style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased;" /></div><div style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; border: 0px; color: inherit; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">to deal with last year</div><div style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; border: 0px; color: inherit; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><br style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased;" /></div><div style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; border: 0px; color: inherit; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"> (Skylark Vol. 5 Issue 1 Summer 2017)<br style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased;" /></div><div style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; border: 0px; color: inherit; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><br style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased;" /></div><div style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; border: 0px; color: inherit; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">While tanka has become my preferred form to write I still find haiku an extremely useful discipline and reminder of the value of saying just enough and no more, and of staying out of my own way when writing. Returning often to haiku is, for me, a way of keeping things in perspective.<br style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased;" /></div><div style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; border: 0px; color: inherit; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><br style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased;" /></div><div style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; border: 0px; color: inherit; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">in the shiny curve<br style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased;" /></div><div style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; border: 0px; color: inherit; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">of the bath tap<br style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased;" /></div><div style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; border: 0px; color: inherit; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">my tiny self</div><div style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; border: 0px; color: inherit; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><br style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased;" /></div><div style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; border: 0px; color: inherit; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"> (Blithe Spirit Vol 29 No 2 May 2019)<br style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased;" /></div><div style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; border: 0px; color: inherit; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><br /></div><div style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; border: 0px; color: inherit; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><br /></div><div style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; border: 0px; color: inherit; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Article originally published in Blithe Spirit Vol 30 No 2 May 2020</div><div style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; border: 0px; color: inherit; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><br style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; background-color: white; font-family: calibri, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px;" /></div>Alisonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07005806387830212175noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17733730.post-43957618424933022682020-09-03T15:30:00.003+01:002020-09-03T15:30:26.298+01:00<div>The rift</div><div><br /></div><div>He doesn't talk about it because he can't find words that people will understand. A few times, early on, he made attempts but they ended in frustration and failure. Those who have been to certain places don't come back, although they appear to. They are forever separated from the rest. They themselves can see the rift quite clearly, but others only have a vague sense of it. </div><div><br /></div><div>borderlands</div><div>the scent of road dust </div><div>and aromatic herbs</div><div><br /></div><div>Blithe Spirit Vol 30 No 3 August 2020</div>Alisonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07005806387830212175noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17733730.post-1958298207516843762020-09-03T15:28:00.003+01:002020-09-03T15:28:32.566+01:00after school<div>we played a game</div><div>called 'touch'</div><div>laughing as we ran</div><div>to find a safe place</div><div><br /></div><div>Blithe Spirit Vol 30 No 3 August 2020 </div>Alisonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07005806387830212175noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17733730.post-22376124586822270082020-09-03T15:27:00.004+01:002020-09-03T15:27:28.967+01:00taken back<div>by the scent of</div><div>oregano</div><div>to a path that leads down</div><div>to a cooling sea</div><div><br /></div><div>Blithe Spirit Vol 30 No 3 August 2020</div>Alisonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07005806387830212175noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17733730.post-47985928359220551712020-09-03T15:26:00.003+01:002020-09-03T15:26:36.274+01:00desire takes on<div>an extra poignancy</div><div>waiting</div><div>for the night tide</div><div>to bring you home</div><div><br /></div><div>Blithe Spirit Vol 30 No 3 August 2020</div>Alisonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07005806387830212175noreply@blogger.com0