Life Tanka

do not slide your hand
into your pocket for warmth
put your hand in mine
I'll hold it while the wind blows
and at the end when it's still


Written for One Stop Poetry Form Monday, which focused today on the tanka, a Japanese love poem with lots of rules! Hopefully I followed them all without losing the spirit of the poem. It was a fun challenge, anyway: 5 lines of 5/7/5/7/7 syllables with a season word, no punctuation, and a twist-- the first three lines must stand on their own as a mini-poem, and the last three lines as well (so the middle line is used in both). Phew! If you want to read more about the ancient form of tanka as well as other entries, click here.

Valentine Heart and Bellingham Bay

(No, I didn't paint the heart. It was already there, I promise!)

Minihenge

I don't know if there's any spiritual significance with this stone maze or if it's "just" art, but either way it's quite striking. You can find it by following the railroad tracks south of Marine Park until you get to a little clearing. It's hard to tell the scale from the picture, but there's enough room to walk the maze if you put one foot carefully in front of the other.

Skywatch Friday: Vicissitude

The vicissitude
as sun set and storm brewed
flooded the sky with chromaticity--
hues of great intensity.


(I just love the word vicissitude--
but you have to say it with attitude!)

Marine Park at Dusk

A steady stream of silhouettes
parade up and down the railroad tracks--
color leaching away as the sun sets
turning reds and blues and greens to black.

Haiku #8

sunlight's last pink gleam
the splash of kayaks, the smell
of coming snow

Monday One Stop Poetry Form: Haiku


I couldn't stop thinking in haiku, so I posted another at my other blog:
Lizziviggi and the Life Worth Living

Skywatch Friday: Lagoon

I had been taking pictures over this lagoon for several minutes before I realized that what I thought was a pole at the end of the pier was someone doing their evening yoga.

For more Skywatch Friday pictures click HERE.

Sunset at Marine Park

A variety of people came to Marine Park to enjoy the early spring weather and watch the sun go down.

SkyWatch Friday: Islands and Bay

The sun sinks behind Orcas and Lummi Islands.

Beyond them lies Vancouver Island and British Columbia's capital city, Victoria. It is easy to forget that a good chunk of Vancouver Island actually lies south of our beautiful Bellingham.

Fore more Skywatch Friday photos click HERE.

Valentine Sunset

sunset on Valentine's Day
just as beautiful
if you're with a lover
or just skipping rocks

Duty

This dog had pretty well tired himself of swimming after the tennis ball and came over to say hello. Concerned that his dog would shake himself dry on us, the owner threw the ball again in an attempt to draw him away. The dog stood for a moment and eyed the floating ball with tired eyes, but after some coaxing performed the duty he knew he must.