poem

Half a Haibun 2

Half a haibun a collaborative project between bloggers. Shack: Robert Okaji prose 10000hoursleft tankaThis structure’s eye accepts light but not wind. Within the rectangle I cannot see my breath’s product. The floor resembles cork; our senses fill gaps in perception. Does one read emptiness with disdain or horror? The sun recedes. I fear ice in the trees, weight on my chest.

thoughts evaporate…

heaven’s clowns release their tears

sink! or swim time’s tide

silver trails depreciate,

mollusca’s retreat for one

 

Tanka inspired by Robert Okaji’s prose. Robert is a poet extraordinaire who blogs at O at the Edges. He is a beer connoisseur, foodie, sharp knife aficionado, and doesn’t take himself too seriously. Thanks so much for collaborating Bob! It was through reading this post on Bob’s blog a while back that I came across the haibun, beginning my love affair with the form. 

Half a Haibun is an ongoing (and occasional) feature here at 10000hoursleft. A collaborative project with bloggers I admire- they write the prose that I then use as inspiration for a tanka or haiku. The intention being that together, we’ll create a whole; 2 halves converging to add a richness and complexity to one another, in the form of a haibun. Others in the series:

Half a Haibun 1: The Unhappy Wife (with K E Garland)

Unveiled

Image of Myrna Loy hat veil 1930s for haiku prompt words veiled and fray trail blazing hollywood actress

she entered the fray

threw her hat into the ring

unveiled hidden strengths

 

Prompt words fray and veiled courtesy of RonovanWrites’ Haiku Poetry Prompt Writing Challenge. The image is of the late Myrna Loy. I came across her looking for a veiled image of a woman who looks like she’s about to kick ass. Turns out Myrna was a trail blazer in influencing social/cultural change, having co-chaired the Advisory Council of the National Committee Against Discrimination in Housing, and in pre-Instagram 1948, being the first Hollywood celebrity to become a member of the U.S. National Commission for UNESCO.

Transmigration

 

Image: Aim4Beauty

James extended the wooden ladder against the side of their house, its gutter bursting with leaves being washed away from their summer resting place. He was racing against time, the elements and his wife’s contractions. Alice was at the Royal, 14 hours into labour. The sudden wild, torrential rain had given James reprieve from his helpless, emasculated presence at her hospital bedside. Continue reading →

Me,Peaches and Sally

Welcome to week 3 of the 10 week series of time travel posts. Click on the image above, to be transported! Watch your head on that tumbleweed, and mind the gap!

This week’s edition completes a trifecta of writings inspired by art. Here, I present a modern day take on Jean-François Millet’s The Gleaners. I also wrote on the topic in this post.

If you’d like to continue your travels through the tumbleweed, check out the menu item of the same name for others in the series.

Job Seeker’s Sonnet 1

file000103102419

To whom it may concern

I am in search of employment

From what I can discern

It may help with my mortgage payment

Your vibrant workplace culture

Conjures up thoughts of a monthly brief

Where in place of monotonous torture

We’d be led in song by none other than the chief

A focus on sustainability

I can say we match there too

I’d like to sustain a livability

That affords the occasional Jimmy Choo

To close I’ll leave you with a blurb containing an adjective or three

A hard working, expert, team playing professional, you’d do well to hire me.

I had fun with this and learnt a little about poetry and rhyme schemes. The subject was inspired by This Post where poet Robert Okaji is interviewed and mentions his foray into editing and proof reading resumes and cover letters. No high heels were worn in writing this poem or ever, where the author can avoid it.