the sarashina diary

i yearn for a tranquil moment

I yearn for a tranquil moment
To be out upon the sea of harmony,
In that enchanted boat.
Oh, boatman, do you know my heart?

~The Sarashina Diary (Diaries of Court Ladies of Old Japan)

A small section of the Pacific Ocean along the Oregon coastline (2010) and a poem from The Sarashina Diary submitted in response to Travel with Intent’s six word challenge.

remembrance of her…

“For remembrance of her I wanted to write about her,”… but I stopped short with the words, “Ink seems to have frozen up, I cannot write any more.” *

How shall I gather memories of my sister?

The stream of letters is congealed. 

No comfort may be found in icicles 

  ~The Sarashina Diary (Diaries of Court Ladies of Old Japan)

Nikon D750 f/4.5 1/400 58mm

*The continuous writing of the cursive Japanese characters is often compared to a meandering river. “Ink seems to have frozen up” means that her eyes are dim with tears, and no more she can write continuously and flowingly.

lens-artists photo challenge: reflections

Even into the mind always clouded with grief, 
There is cast the reflection of the bright moon ~The Sarashina Diary (Diaries of Court Ladies of Old Japan)

North Shields Pond.…Nikon D750 f/7.1 1/400s 44mm 360 ISO

image submitted in response to Patti’s lens-artists photo challenge: reflections

lens artists photo challenge: splash

     

Even water could not live on– 
So lonesome is the mountain 
Of the leaf-scattering stormy wind. ~The Sarashin Diary (Diaries of Court Ladies of Old Japan)

Snowy Range…   Nikon D750    f/5.6   1/3200s  145mm   2800 ISO 

Visit Patti at  P.A. Moed to join this week’s lens-artists photo challenge: splash