Once upon a time A tiny striped caterpillar Burst from the egg Which had been home For so long. "Hello world," he said. "It sure is bright out here in the sun." (excerpt from Trina Paulus, Hope for the Flowers)
Fun striped and checked findings for Leya’s lens-artists photo challenge!
today’s heavenly gift
again is small…
billowing cloud ~Issa (cited: haikuguy.com)
micro images (AF-S micro nikkor 40mm) submitted in response to slow shutter speed’s lens-artists photo challenge.
be safe…be well…be sage.
“It was the best of times, it was the worst of times,
“it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness,
“it was the epoch of belief, it was the epoch of incredulity,
“it was the season of Light, it was the season of Darkness, it was the winter of despair,
“we had everything before us, we had nothing before us,
“we were all going direct to Heaven, we were all going direct the other way
“– in short, the period was so far like the present period,
“that some of its noisiest authorities insisted on its being received,
“for good or for evil, in the superlative degree of comparison only.” ~Charles Dickens, A Tale of Two Cities.
Quote from Charles Dickens’, A Tale of Two Cities, and images submitted in response to Travels and Trifles first photo challenge for 2021.
Silence
in a field with oak trees.
The winter moon.
~Buson, (cited: Y Sawa & E Shiffert, Haiku Master Buson)
if my father were here–
dawn colors
over green fields ~Issa (cited: haiku.guy)
Glazed silk, newly cut, smooth, glittering, white, As white, as clear, even as frost and snow. Perfectly fashioned into a fan, Round, round, like the brilliant moon, Treasured in my Lord's sleeve, taken out, put in— Wave it, shake it, and a little wind flies from it. How often I fear the Autumn Season's coming And the fierce, cold wind which scatters the blazing heat. Discarded, passed by, laid in a box alone; Such a little time, and the thing of love cast off. ~Pan Chieh-Yü*
*cited: Trans: Florence Ayscough & Any Lowell The Project Gutenberg EBook of Fir-Flower Tablets
We live
in a tide-swept inlet,
floating, flung.
In such a world, why cling to
collections of poems?
~Izumi Shikibu, (J Hirshfield & M Aratani, The Ink Dark Moon)
previously posted on November, 2017
The images above were created through the use of multiple exposure, both within camera and through digital editing. This Double Exposure project was inspired by the belief that images give voice to the emotional pain of COVID across the globe. While this virus does not discriminate, the number of people who are most impacted during this time are those who live within impoverished communities—dense housing projects, reliance on public transportation, low income, limited access to medical care and sick leave, employment instability, and rates of non-communicable diseases and illness.
The phoenix that may arise from the flames of inconsolable grief is an awareness of the inequality aggregation of these social and economic disparities exacerbates the adverse effects of all humanity.
COVID-19 is not a pandemic. It is a syndemic.
The grass does not refuse To flourish in the spring wind; The leaves are not angry At falling through the autumn sky. Who with whip or spur Can urge the feet of Time? The things of the world flourish and decay, Each at its own hour. ~LiPo
Trans: Arthur Waley, The Poet Li Po II. 26. The Sun Gutenberg.org
“The old man was thin and gaunt with deep wrinkles in the back of his neck. The brown blotches of the benevolent skin cancer the sun brings from its reflections on the tropic sea were on his cheeks. The blotches ran well down the sides of his face and his hands had the deep crease scars from handling heavy fish on the cords. But none of these scars were fresh. They were as old as erosions in a fishless desert.” ~Ernest Hemingway, The Old Man and the Sea
Opening a door of gratitude…
Reading an author’s words that have traveled through time and space.
Regret that dropping sun’s dusk; Love this cold stream’s clearness. Western beams follow flowing water; Stir a ripple in wandering person’s mind. Idly sing, gazing at cloudy moon; Song done—sound of tall pines. ~Li Po*
Camping with family in the Snowies
Watching clouds drift over Cameron Peak
Watching children explore life through play
Waking to the silence of an early Spring’s snowfall
Being grateful for photographers inviting me to see the beauty of the blue and yellowish-brown colors of early spring
Driving through Wyoming on clear roadways
Seeing the smile of togetherness
Opening myself to the wisdom of words spoke by those younger than I
Sharing precious love-filled moments
This week Amy (The World is a Book) invited us to share precious moments we have had, before or during the pandemic.
*cited: Trans – Arthur Waley, The Poet Li Po Project Gutenberg ebook
On and on, always on and on Away from you, parted by a life-parting. Going from one another ten thousand “li,” Each in a different corner of the World. The way between is difficult and long, Face to face how shall we meet again? The Tartar horse prefers the North wind, The bird from Yüeh nests on the Southern branch. Since we parted the time is already long, Daily my clothes hang looser round my waist. Floating clouds obscure the white sun, The wandering one has quite forgotten home. Thinking of you has made me suddenly old, The months and years swiftly draw to their close. I’ll put you out of my mind and forget for ever And try with all my might to eat and thrive.*
*cited: Trans: Arthur Waley, Project Gutenberg A Hundred and Seventy Poems. Note: The above poem is from a series known as the Nineteen Pieces of Old Poetry. Some have been attributed to Mei Shēng (first century b.c.), and one to Fu I (first century a.d.).
Image and poem submitted in response to Travel with Intent’s Six Word Challenge
a meditative journey 
You must be logged in to post a comment.