Zen Poem
by Ikkyū (1394-1481)
Rain and hail, snow and ice
Are divided from one another;
But after they fall,
They are the same water
Of the stream in the valley.
Photo: “Zen Snow” by Holly Garner-Jackson, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
Read the poet’s Wikipedia biography here.
zen and the snow shovel
by Debby J. Rosenberg
silence but for the scrape
of a blade across concrete
the icy crackle as boots
pressed into the dry powder
and cheeks rosy exposed
themselves to the arctic
chill
how like a human
trying to control the
path, clearing it of
frosty debris
silence was all around
winter had descended
burying bushes
under white blankets
the breath expressed
with a misty vapor
exposing the ether
of alive
the sound, the smell
the touch, and the sight
was glorious for a moment
and felt like the waves of
nature’s disposition conspiring
its sustainable existence
and all I have is a shovel
Photo: Kay Ellen, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
THE MAPLE TREES
by Noin Hoshi
Mount Mimuro sends its winds
Down upon the maple trees
To carry off the colored leaves
And work crimson patterns
Upon the stream of Tatsuta.
Photo: Eshelton Wilder, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
COOL CLAY
by Gary Snyder
In a swarm of yellowjackets
a squirrel drinks water
feet in the cool clay, head way down
Photo: Shirley Leighton, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
“Cool Clay” is found in Gary Snyder‘s 2004 collection DANGER ON PEAKS, published by Shoemaker Hoard, available at Amazon.com.
How beautiful –
Red peppers
After the autumn gale.
YOSA BUSON
PHOTO: Len McAlpine, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
Zen Yo-Yo
by Tom Robbins
Brown spider dangling
from a single strand.
Up down, up down:
Zen yo-yo.
Photo: O. Takizawa, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
Note: This haiku and several others appear in Wild Ducks Flying Backward: The Short Writings of Tom Robbins (Bantam, 2005).
THE WATER BIRDS
by Onitsura
The water birds seem heavy
But they float.
Photo: Nathan DeGargoyle
COOL CLAY
by Gary Snyder
In a swarm of yellowjackets
a squirrel drinks water
feet in the cool clay, head way down
Photo: Shirley Leighton, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
“Cool Clay” is found in Gary Snyder‘s 2004 collection DANGER ON PEAKS, published by Shoemaker Hoard, available at Amazon.com.
Zen Poem
by Ikkyū (1394-1481)
Rain and hail, snow and ice
Are divided from one another;
But after they fall,
They are the same water
Of the stream in the valley.
Photo: “Zen Snow” by Holly Garner-Jackson, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
Read the poet’s Wikipedia biography here.
“And then the car was beside him, not idling but panting like a deadly animal which may or may not be tamed.” STEPHEN KING, The Stand
Photo: Java1888, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
Note: The above photo of man and car belongs to Java1888, who states on Flickr.com: “I recently found this awesome 50s photo album at an antique store. Its full of extremely hip 50s people and their stuff!”
The dashing man in the cool suit and jaunty hat is a few years pre-Mad Men. My best guess is that car is a 1957 Ford Fairlane (a model sold from 1955-1970). While reading about Ford Fairlanes on Wikipedia, I was inspired to turn some of the words into the zen poem featured below.
ZEN POEM:
1957 FORD FAIRLANE
by Wikipedia
For 1957, a new style gave
a longer, wider, lower,
and sleeker look
with low tailfins.
Silver Birch Press 