Collaborative tanka sequence ("tanka pair")

I'm pleased to post this tanka pair, a collaboration with the talented Jo McInerney:

Mementos 

Janet Lynn Davis, USA ("what to keep")
& Jo McInerney, Australia ("we repair")

what to keep, 
what to throw away ...
tiny rhinestones 
missing from the wings 
of her butterfly brooch 

we repair 
her diamante bow 
before pinning it 
to her burial shift ...
the hope of resurrection 

—Skylark, 4:1, Summer 2016

From Jo:
The woman for whom this tanka was written was Mum's oldest sister and outlived her by 27 years. She was my daughter's surrogate grandmother and my second mother. When she died I felt as though I had been orphaned again. 

From Janet:
This is my first Mother's Day without the earthly presence of my mother, Joan (pronounced JoAnn), who passed away on April 20 after a lengthy, debilitating illness. The world feels a little silent now. (I did, of course, keep the butterfly pin.)

Joan 

Sprinkling glitter

sprinkling glitter
on my childhood artwork,
brushing away
the bits of sparkle
that just won't stick 

—Skylark 2:1, Summer 2014

Autumn gust

autumn gust—

from all the earrings

in the shop

I pick out the pair

resembling spring leaves

—Atlas Poetica, #17, Spring 2014

It's pretty

it’s pretty

she says while showing me

the sparkling

little gold trinket

she’ll glue inside my mouth

—Atlas Poetica #14, March 2013

Her wedding ring

her wedding ring
found deep in red mud
………...that May day
when the tornado
tore through their heartland

Oklahoma, May 2013

—red lights, Vol. 10, No. 2, June 2014

A gift

a gift
of lion earrings
from the suitor
who kept insisting
I was a mouse

—red lights, Vol. 10, No. 1, January 2014

A thimble; from my mother

a thimble,
my Monopoly piece ...
and for years
the only metal thing
I wore on this finger

— cattails, premiere issue, January 2014

from my mother

the wisdom in saving

scraps of cloth ...

inevitable,

the patching to be done

— red lights, Vol. 10, No. 1, January 2014

Crystal droplets

crystal droplets

and leafless branches

of dark bronze . . .

this chandelier becomes

a winter garden

— a tanka I posted at Kirsten Cliff's blog for her Siloh Tanka Contest 2012 ("Winter Dream") 

Though I may be very sensitive to allergens such as pollen—which we do have a lot of around here, even in winter—design-wise I like bringing the outdoors inside. My preferred aesthetic is rustic and old-looking with a small amount of bling. Thus, the above chandelier is perfect for me (and I managed to snatch it up for a decent price too). My significant other was lukewarm to it; however, on this item I wasn't going to compromise (smile). Alas, my winter garden!

P.S. In reality, the actual chandelier branches aren't completely "leafless." ;)

My stolen ...

my stolen
Valentine pendant,
at its center
a golden, mythical bird
wings no longer mine

—Modern English Tanka, Vol. 1, No. 1 (Autumn 2006); Fire Pearls: Short Masterpieces of the Human Heart (2006)

I seem to have a fondness for birds, in jewelry and in general. The pendant was a late Valentine's gift one year, brought back from a Qatar business trip. Soon thereafter, when some work was being done inside our house, it "disappeared" and never showed up again.

We solder

we solder
another heart charm
to the bracelet. . .
I never could dangle
myself out there like that

—Moonbathing, Issue 5, Fall/Winter 2011 - 2012

Plain and simple, practical, reserved yet fairly sturdy: the way I grew. I guess I don't care for a ton of frilliness. But I admit I do like hearts (flowers too). So perhaps there is some vulnerability beneath the protective exterior.

.