Tag: love

Cobbled

“This cobbled road of us”

rambled from plans of spring to summertime

checkered cloths of bread, cheese, wine

bouquets of parsley, roses, thyme.

Quarrels flared then repaired

with and not with words

to polish understanding

a chromatic weave of notes

that holds us whole.

~

©2018 Ontheland

The first line is from “We will be lost and found a thousand times along this cobbled road of us” by Atticus.  Many thanks to our dVerse host, Whimsygizmo for Quadrille #58—Cobble us a Poem.

a kiss

cello voice murmurs

love beyond words resounding

a window opens

©️2018 Ontheland

~

There is some kiss we want with 

our whole lives, the touch of

spirit on the body. Seawater

begs the pearl to break its shell.

And the lily, how passionately

it needs some wild darling! At

night, I open the window and ask

the moon to come and press its

face against mine. Breathe into

me. Close the language- door and

open the love window. The moon

won’t use the door, only the window.

© Rumi (taken from: Soul of Rumi by Coleman Barks)

In response to Carpe Diem 1394: Some kiss we want

Crossroads

dreams of love

pour from her hood

like spring blossoms

falling in rain, yet the moon

flashes on her fishing line

©️2018 Ontheland

~

My tanka is a second Crossroads piece that finds a place of meeting between two translations of Japanese haiku….another interesting challenge open to everyone at Carpe Diem Haiku Kai. These are the two haiku that inspired my poem:

a thousand gallons

shower from the eaves…

cherry blossoms

© Kobayashi Issa, 1763-1828

~

it touches the line

of my fishing pole –

this summer moon 

© Chiyo-Ni, 1703-1775

~

The pin

My mother

was not one for symbols

poetry, flowers, song

Life was survival

drawing within the lines

propriety

avoiding illness, death, disgrace

She loved in a quiet way

I love you, not said

was to be understood

shown in service

in food prepared

in time given

in a kiss goodnight…

She offered her token

with shyness

surprised to discover

it would be treasured

(did I not show my love?)

an ornate but simple pin

of her mother’s mother, Catherine

C Mc K,

entwined initials

of a mother who died young,

a connection in my hands to

to touch

to wander with

into invisible realms.

~

Inspired by dVerse Tuesday Poetics: Threads of Feeling

Siddhartha

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Two fledglings take flight,
young monks in search of wisdom
Soulmates since childhood,
Siddhartha and Govinda

Together in dreams,
apart in the waking world
feathers in their hearts
buffeted by winds of time

Rivers feed the sea
raindrops fill every stream
listen to the sounds
rivers speaking many tongues

Do rivers chant “Om”,
sacred mantra of Brahmins
mirrors of being,
perpetual becoming?

Siddhartha listens,
hears union in water flow
Govinda feels love,
his heart reawakes with joy

Spring rivers overflowing
singing then, now, what will be

~

In response to Carpe Diem Haiku Kai Weekend Meditation #21 Out of the Box #3 , I have attempted a Choka, a Japanese form of any length in a 5-7 syllable pattern ending with 7-7.  I chose Siddhartha by Hermann Hesse as the theme, a beautiful spiritual fable translated by Hilda Rosner and published in 1951. I paired the poem with a picture of a local stream that I took at this time of year in 2016.  Siddhartha has been featured in several posts this month at Carpe Diem Haiku Kai.

©2018 Ontheland

Power to love

He who is
devoid of the power to forgive is wrapped in arms of distraction
so absorbing that he is
devoid of the power to love,
captivated by the seductions of
pride, rage, and hurt.
These constant companions,
squeeze close.
Strange monsters, they Rule.
Monsters have No time
to breathe serenity, No time
to gaze at the stars or
to sniff morning air.
They nibble food laced with
shame, fear, sorrow and regret.

As the moon pulls the tides
and baby wolves cry in hunger,
monsters grow weary.
With three eyes open
you may glimpse a release
and murmur:
“There is some good where I thought none could dwell. In the worst of us beats a heart ready to love.”

And under a full moon you know
some evil lurks like a dormant virus
in the best of us.

~ ~ ~

In response to dVerse Poetics: “Bold Tributes“. “…tonight we are going to be bold in our truth-telling by illuminating powerful quotes that inspire social justice, global peace, or human rights.” The challenge is to incorporate a quote in a poem, highlighting it in bold type. The quote I chose is of Martin Luther King Jr:

“He who is devoid of the power to forgive is devoid of the power to love. There is some good in the worst of us and some evil in the best of us.”

©️2018 Ontheland