Haibun – Day 42 and Earth Day – April 22, 2020

Haibun – Day 42 and Earth Day

It’s day 42 of the lock down here in Italy due to COVID-19 pandemic. The days are warm now, spring is all around us. My lemon, lime and kumquat trees are blooming filling the air with sweet perfume. My wind chimes tingle in the afternoon breeze. Who could believe that there is a disease that has killed thousands of people blowing in the wind.

bird song and blossoms
in the wind sweet perfume
– silent death

My friend’s wife developed a cough a while ago and she was put in quarantine (her husband and child who live with her were in quarantine too). They couldn’t leave their house for any reason, penalty a huge fine and if someone got sick because they’d done so they risked imprisonment. A health call-center called three times a day for their vitals, temperature and all that. All of their trash had to be put into two plastic bags and left outside their home for pickup. It was an innocent cough … this lasted 14 days.

through the wind
dust, pollen and COVID
– life and death

One wonders if it will end and how? Some people, not having seen death don’t believe that there is really a pandemic. Some people in the world have become violent about the lock downs and some protest that their rights are being violated. Some say our life will never be the same. Some say COVID will be with us until we find a vaccine. Who knows? Today is also Earth day.

across the Earth
skies are clear and clean
– COVID

© gsk ’20

Haiku- Shiva’s Dance – April 10, 2020

 

Shiva’s Dance (Tandava)

even headless crowns
must move to Lord Shiva’s tune
– Tāṇḍavam

© gsk ’20

In this time of the COVID-19 pandemic we might remember that even the coronavirus is part of the world and follows its principles.

“Tāṇḍavam (also known as Tāṇḍava natyam) is a divine dance performed by the Hindu god Lord Shiva. The dance is a pictorial allegory of the five principle manifestations of eternal energy:

Srishti – creation, evolution
Sthiti – preservation, support
Samhara – destruction, evolution
Tirodhana – illusion
Anugraha – release, emancipation, grace

Thus Tandava symbolizes the cosmic cycles of creation and destruction, as well as the daily rhythm of birth and death. ”

Vines – April 5, 2020 – Shahai

autumn vine
last blaze
before snow
gsk ’20

In this time of coronavirus everything in one way or another brings to mind the situation we are living through.  Looking at all the maps of the various countries reminded me of the autumn vines in our area.

Vines here are very important and when they are red … then soon the leaves will all fall and the once beautiful fields of red will look dead and forlorn awaiting the white and black of winter.  But then there is the rebirth of the vines in spring …

Solitude – April 4, 2020 – Shahai

a crowed beach
and yet
so alone –
gsk’20

 

 

Tanka for My Haiku Pond – March 29, 2020

Sunday morning.
in the empty piaza
pigeons wander
no laughing children
chase them in play

(c) gsk’20

The request is to write a ku that reflects the atmosphere of the coronavirus in my area. I live in northern Italy.

Christmas Mummer – December 18, 2017 (tanka)

eventide
waltzing through the street
winter mummers*
twirling golden fairy lights
one for every season

gsk ’17

 

Mummer definition, a person who wears a mask or fantastic costume while merrymaking or taking part in a pantomime, especially at Christmas and other festive seasons.

November 19, 2017 Autumn Reflections (tanka and haiku)

orange squash
bubbling in a pot
silence deepens
then from the window
laughter! children playing ball

evening shadow
in the naked kaki* tree
a last leaf falls

gsk ’17

• kaki – persimmon

An evening walk – A Story in Waka – October 16, 2016

An evening walk – A Story in Waka

crossing Arco’s bridge
the gloaming paints the clouds
three broken street lamps
add to the skyline etching
how lovely shadows can be

cars whiz past
still the geraniums bloom
on the bridge railings

crossing the road
under shadowy clouds
through rushing traffic
how unlike the river Sarca
this modern flow of steel

under pools of gold
from lamplight to lamplight
this road leads home

ahi – noisy dog
jumping and barking loudly
behind closed gates
whether challenge or welcome
it goes unheeded

old stone wall
silently guides lone footsteps
up this moonlit path

the stream is silent
under the wooden bridge
despite morning rains

Bolognano
the church bells strike eight
as I enter town
light spills from closed windows
bodiless voices drift by

I unlock my door
a cautious cat looks on
just beyond my reach

© Gsk ‘16

Magnolias – Haibun – April 27, 2016

Magnolia Blossoms – June 2, 2014

For a month on Carpe Diem Haiku Kai, we were often asked to write about magnolias in one form or another.  As often happens with prompts born either with Japanese season words or from a country that has nothing to do with Italian culture and climate, one can either invent or write about something else. With 210 types of magnolias (I’m presuming both bushes and trees) throughout the planet, there’s no surprise that the colours vary … but also the period of the year when they flower.  We must presume that the Hapsburgs had a form of magnolia planted in the 1800s in Arco’s lanes and parks which flowers later than those in Holland!

flower-less lane
Arco’s magnolias bloom
in May sunshine

© G.s.k. ‘16

Carpe Diem #963 Magnolia

Magnolia Blossoms – Haibun – April 18, 2016

Arco, the town I where I live in Trentino-Alto Adige, Italy was once, and not so long ago,  an Austrian health station.  The micro-climate, created by Lake Garda has made the area’s climate particularly mild and the “Ora” the daily wind that comes up off the lake in the summer clears away humidity and eventual pollutants.

Magnolia Lane runs between the back of the old Casino and the most important Sanatorium of the age (now converted into administrative buildings) leads to the centre of town and the central city park.  In spring when the magnolias bloom not only is it beautiful to walk down, with their large white flowers but the delicate perfume that fills the air is something close to divine.

in magnolia lane
the blossoms catch the rain
as blackbirds sing

© G.s.k. ‘16

 

Carpe Diem Theme Week 3: Magnolia Blossoms haiku by Soseki Natsume

(My haibun was written to honour Soseki Natsume, celebrated by Carpe Diem Haiku Kai yesterday.)

he sky I see
seems full of
magnolia blossoms

© Soseki Natsume

“Sōseki Natsume (February 9, 1867-December 9, 1916) was born Natsume Kinnosuke. He is widely known as the foremost Japanese novelist of the Meiji period. He was a scholar of British literature and a composer of haiku, Chinese-style poetry, and fairy tales. From 1984 to 2004, his portrait was featured on the Japanese 1000 yen note.
Natsume Kinnosuke was born in Babashita in the Edo region. He was adopted by a childless couple, but after their divorce, he was returned to his biological mother at age 9. However, his mother died only five years later.
While attending First Tokyo Middle School, he was enamored with Chinese literature. He went on to study architecture at Tokyo Imperial University.
In 1887, he met Masaoka Shiki who encouraged him to become a writer. From that point on, he chose the pen name Sōseki which means “stubborn” in Chinese. In 1893, he became a part-time teacher at the Tokyo Normal School while he studied as a graduate student.
Natsume began teaching at Matsuyama Middle School in 1895. During this time, he began publishing his haiku and Chinese poetry.
In 1900, he became the first Japanese English literary scholar and lived in poverty, loneliness, and mental problems while attempting to solidify his knowledge of English literature at the University College, London. After his return to Japan, he became a professor of English literature at Tokyo Imperial University.
He died of a stomach ulcer in 1916″