Bold new signs

bold new signs
at the nursing home
about guns—
I look for glimmers of life
behind the glass doors

—Ripples in the Sand, 2016 Tanka Society of America Members' Anthology

Haiga: Ordered

For information about this memorial, please see KYSO Flash, issue 6, Fall 2016.

Cruising waters

cruising waters
where the great auk once thrived …
what of me
is prized enough
for the greedy to seize?

—Skylark 2:2, Winter 2014, "Skylark's Nest" clutch of runners-up

Skylark is a wonderful journal of tanka and its related forms, edited by poet extraordinaire Claire Everett and including a liberal sprinkling of artwork by her talented daughter Amy. With this issue, fellow poet-blogger Jenny Ward Angyal officially joins the crew as reviews and features editor. 

Each issue, poets are invited to write a "Skylark's Nest" tanka inspired by a nature-themed drawing. 

I was happy to be able to cruise northeastern waters last spring. My travels included a side excursion to the Bird Islands off Nova Scotia. The great auk no longer exists, thanks to exploitation by humans, but from a distance, through thick cloud cover and drizzle, I managed to see a few of its relatives, i.e., puffins and razorbills. 

Razorbills: Bird Islands, Nova Scotia, Canada

Tanka Prose

Fine roots

"No more hurting people

Peace" *

with pebbles

I prop them back up—

my lavender

barely past seedling stage

uprooted by wind

April 15, 2013, mid-afternoon. Staring out the window, I notice that some of them are bowing heavily, a few others passed out. Just a couple of days ago, I had planted them carefully in a neat row down the center of the bed. Now, I must painstakingly tuck them back in.

After I return inside, I learn that a horrific attack has occurred at the Boston Marathon. Much more news would follow: so many serious injuries, a child among the dead. What do parents say to their children, even those not immediately affected? 

________________

* Words on a sign made by Martin Richard, eight years old, one of the three people killed.

—LYNX, February 2014   

"with pebbles" first published at Haiku News, August 2013. 

Wishing you peace.