Tag: #CosPhoChal

Faces

I put the flower in a cup of water so it will not wilt. The cat puts her face in it as well. She wonders what that flower is doing here. The flower isn’t doing anything. It would have preferred to remain where it had been attached to its true source of nourishment and understanding, its roots. They miss each other.

Birds sit on a railing watching me approach. They aren’t struggling to survive. Survival is not that hard. They are not afraid I will pick one of them and put it in a cup of water so it will not wilt. I have no crumbs for them. They don’t mind.

SUMMER FLOWERS CUT
KIKI DRINKS BLOSSOM WATER
BIRDS WATCH AS I WALK.

Linked to dVerse Haibun Monday. Toni is hosting on any topic.  Come join us to write a haibun.
Photos: “Kiki Hiding Her Face” and “Birds on Boardwalk”, below, both by the author. These are linked to K’lee and Dale‘s Cosmic Photo Challenge with the theme “faces”. My cat Kiki’s face is hidden.  The birds don’t mind showing their faces anywhere.

Birds on Boardwalk

High Water

The river overflowed the trails.
The brown cattails
And lilies there
And birds don’t care.

My disappointment flickers though.
I’ll let it go
Eventually.
There’s much to see.

When blocked from going on my walk,
The chatter-talk
I want to mind
Can rest, unwind.

Linked to dVerse Quadrille celebrating its 6th Anniversary and hosted by Grace with prompt word “flicker”.
Photo “Exterior of the Trail” by the author linked to K’lee and Dale‘s Cosmic Photo Challenge with theme “exterior”.  I am on the outside or exterior of the Des Plaines River Trail at Half Day Forest Preserve.  High water from the rains a couple days ago overflowed the river onto the trails although that overflowing is not evident in this picture.  The collage below contains scenes in Half Day Forest Preserve that I would have missed if the trails were usable.  They are also part of the “exterior” of these trails.

Scenes from Half Day Forest Preserve

The Interior of the Puddle

Inside the puddle there’s a sky.
The clouds up high
Are now below
But muddied so.

I walk and bring along my mind.
We love to find
What’s likely true
And joyful, too.

A fantasy made from the light
Still isn’t night.
It’s truly day
Revealed this way.

Photo: “The Interior of the Puddle” by the author linked to K’lee and Dale‘s Cosmic Photo Challenge with the prompt “Interiors”.

I am linking this also to the imaginary garden with real toads’ Tuesday Platform.

July Challenge and Alien Artifacts

Jillys2016 offered a July Challenge for collaborative poetry.  One poet writes the first half of a poem and then another poet finishes it.  My four line poem “Home Tour” may be used for this challenge.  Pretend it is supposed to be an eight line poem and write the second half.

Here I try to complete Charley’s first half.  Charley’s part is in bold red.  It is a quadrille, a poem of 44 words.  He provided the first 22 words.  I have to add the next 22 words of the poem.

The bird broke
my concentration
when he pecked
the door.

“Anatomy of Melancholy”
from my fingers fell.

Closed, it hit the floor.

The bird came in.
He said, “Lenore.”

I said, “What?”

“Nevermore.”

“Never mind?”

“Anymore.”

I boot¹ the bird
and shut the door.

¹Some may argue that what I should have written is “I shoot the bird”, because it sounds better and that is what they would have done, but I will refrain from comment.

Photo: “Ever Growing” by the author linked to K’lee and Dale‘s Cosmic Photo Challenge on the topic of alien artifacts. I am hoping the pots will serve as alien artifacts where we are the invaders and plants are seeing if they can make use of our advanced technology.

Midsummer Daydream

I walk toward Sunset Ridge Woods busy dreaming while this summer day is busy being beautiful.  Last night I read a fable telling about fairies guarding a forest glen.¹  They punished cutting trees in their creative ways using the imaginations of the trespasser. They were more effective than fines–and swifter. Natural retribution could take years or generations. Those fairies kept the riff-raff in line–if you believed in them.

Today governments take over guarding forest preserves. Perhaps they do permit what some might call over-harvesting where it’s out-of-sight and wild. Like beauty, one guy’s rightful use is another guy’s misuse. Governments keep the opportunists in line–if you believe they can.  I wonder how my mind would survive a trespass on a fairy glen? Maybe they still rule in these subtle ways even without my acknowledgment of their existence. If so, who could stop them?

SOUNDS OF SHRILL TRAFFIC
SUMMER WARMS THIS SUNSET TRAIL
SHELTERED BY STILL TREES

¹“The Man Who Had No Story” in Jane Yolen’s Favorite Folktales From Around the World.

Linked to dVerse Haibun Monday hosted by Grace with prompt “Summer”.
Photo: “Green Midsummer Madness” by the author linked to K’lee and Dale‘s Cosmic Photo Challenge with prompt “midsummer madness”.

Beyond

Salt and pepper turn to gray.
Water, wash me all away,
All but love that shines her light
For a journey through the night.

Suffering looks like defeat
Til submission is complete.
Salt and pepper, take this friend.
Guide gray fears beyond the end.

Linked to dVerse Quadrille hosted by Kim from writinginnorthnorfolk.com using the word “pepper”.
Photo: “Power of Love” by the author. This is graffiti I found under a train overpass in Chipilly Woods last weekend. I am linking it to K’lee and Dale’s Cosmic Photo Challenge.  K’lee’s prompt is “Faster than the Speed of Light”.  I hope they will accept it.

Walking on the Beach

Another storm disturbs the air.
I no longer care.
Whatever happens here or there,
The good will ever carry on.

Some of it may wash away.
Some may stay for just a day
Like a fantasy or play
That’s present even when it’s gone.

Linked to dVerse Quadrille hosted by De Jackson aka WhimsyGizmo using the word “storm”.
Photo: “Tracks and Paths” by the author. Linked to K’lee and Dale’s Cosmic Photo Challenge with theme “stay on the path” with the bird illustrating how not to do this.

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