The wreath 

Touching 

The door

 

 

Red stem

Of a fallen leaf

Maple

 

The bee

Found inside

The flower

You lost in bliss

Lying on the grass

So bright the daisies

White petals

Center

 

The trueness

Of the moon

Remains

At sunrise

I watch you sleep

 

A sake brewery

How do you feel

About a mountain hut

 

To the mountain

Sigh with love

Still there

Where is the tide

Rushing to

I wonder where you are

 Well, Yasuko, now is the time,

quietly together, shall we go down?

In the faraway sky, even the flying birds

are filled with a childlike compassion.

                                          ---- Nakahara Chuya

shall we die together?

he whispers in my ear...

fireflies at dusk

                                       ---- Masajo Suzuki

By the hand

A whisper

Taken into your heart

Shall only this ever

Be enough

 Cats making love in the temple

But people would blame

A man and wife for mating in such a place

                                     ---- Chigetsu-ni

outside the lighthouse's

circle of light:

cats' love

                                   ---- Masajo Suzuki

The sound of cats

Mating in the temple

Almost a dare

 

Miracles of Each Moment 1, Kazuaki Tanahashi, 2018

falling snow---

too brilliant a rainbow

in my dream

---- Masajo Suzuki

first snow angel

my prayer

renews

 

Great Peace, Kazuaki Tanahashi, 2018

There'll be a shower a nun has greeted me as I am

---- Hosai Ozaki

On a white wall

          shadow of alpine rose

                    a nun passes by

---- Mitsu Suzuki

Scent of rose

A nun

In habit

Hoshi Matsuri

Bamboo leaves are rustling, rustling,
Swaying close to the roof's edge,
Oh, how the stars are twinkling, twinkling,
Gold and silver grains of sand.

Five wishes 
I have written--
The stars are twinkling
And watching from the sky.

Night of Tanabata

A dream

Of the one

hotaru sono hotaru sono hatsukoippo sono

firefly--

firefly--

first love--

 Clear the impurity in the water of my heart.

                                        ---- Zeami, Hotoke no Hara

Snipped for the Buddha, the poppies continue to bloom

                                        ---- Hosai Ozaki

Staining the heart

Of mountain lake

Red poppy

Little by little

The sound of the cricket

Saying goodbye

 

Strangeness

Of bamboo flowers

Somehow familiar your face

 

Heart-to-heart talk

clear

         midnight moon

                         ---- Mitsu Suzuki

First—

Stars

The mountain

Flowers

Dew

                                                         Clear water
                                                         No front
                                                         No back

                                                         I also saw the moon

                                                        As for this world--               [death poem]

                                                        Ah-- goodbye

                                                                        ---- Chiyo-ni

                                                        Showing its back

                                                        And showing its front          [death poem]

                                                        A falling maple leaf

                                                                        ---- Ryokan

                                                        The moon

                                                        A falling reflection

                                                        Clear

                                                                            first dream--

                                                                            even after awakening

                                                                            the flower's heart the same

                                                                                                                  

                                                                                                   ---- Chiyo-ni

 

Moonlight

Summer

A shining whiteness

Naked

In the waves

 

Because souls living in the water have no need of a conspiracy.

                                       ---December, Alexander Kluge & Gerhard Richter

A sandcastle

The sea

A turtle

 

The order

Of the palms

Pressed together

At the edge

Of the sea

 

Spring—

Vertigo

Of chasteness

The waves

Restless pounding

 

The heart

Udumbara

Turning the world

Into a red shell

Carrying a soft valve

 

Glow in the dark doorbell

Bark all you want

The moon is round

Great polka dot

Time like a dove

Catch this in your teeth

 

Spring

Spring

The call of new leaves

Articulate

Thrush

Spring

All warmth

You have the face

Of a good girl

Who does

Birds poop

Planting seeds

Do you think

Humans

Could do the same?

Slowly pull, pull

Threads of honeysuckle

Through close of trumpet

Put your mouth there

Nectar clinging

Into the darkness

Through womb of cold pines

I go alone

Bringing back

A bowl of chaste snow

The sound

Of a frog

Pond

Burning leaves

The rake

Hanging

Serene sky

This hut

Standing still

Nets

Of Nagasaki fishermen

Mended

A mountain

Cathedral of peace

 

Sky a woodblock

Pine

Blue moon     

                           

 Ah, birds whom I love, I love, I love.

                                 Sakutaro Hagiwara

Coming home

Asleep on the bed

My cat

Full of piss

One old clog

Type

 The quick brown fox jumped over the lazy dog.  {STROKE}

 Consider the counterintuitive color of the fox with the irony of the dog that won't hunt.

"Kiss... Please"  SIRMIONE, LAKE GARDA, ITALY

The quixotic brown cow jumped over the lazy moon--fuhgeddaboutit.  {KEY}

Based on a nursery rhyme, this is more intuitive...all vowels appear in fuhgeddaboutit.

hunt-and-peck

Grandfather: They rode to freedom. And as dawn arose, Westley and Buttercup knew they were safe. A wave of love swept over them. And as they reached for each other... [closes the book]

Grandson: What? What?

Grandfather: Nah, it's kissing again. You don't want to hear it.

Grandson: I don't mind so much.

Grandfather: Okay. [opens the book again] Since the invention of the kiss, there have been five kisses that were rated the most passionate, the most pure. This one left them all behind. [closes the book] The End.

Grandson: Grandpa, maybe you could come over and read it again to me tomorrow. 

Grandfather: As you wish.

                                               --William Goldman, The Princess Bride

The story of how you are here.

Read it again to me tomorrow.

The story of why you are here.

X O X E

The Boy, the mole, the fox and the Horse by Charlie Mackesy

Beauty

Of the wings

This bumblebee

Stirring

Fragrance of flowers

 

Letters

A ceremony

Of brushes with ink

When shall our sleeves

Meet

 

Lotus

Tangled in a scroll

My black hair

Long as a cloud

Of birds

 

Quietness

Of the tea house

A simple bowl

For these flowers

This scroll

 

Berries

Picked this afternoon

For their ripeness

More purple

In your mouth

 

The touch

Of petals

Falling

The moon is dark

Dear