a haibun is a Japanese form based on prose and poetry. It is a true accounting of an event in your life. This one is brief in the manner of Basho, the “inventor” of haibun. It is closed with a seasonal haiku. This haibun is less than 100 words. Haibun are not fiction.
Haibun: Gifts
“Breath is the finest gift of nature. Be grateful for this wonderful gift.” Amit Ray
Years ago, my mother gave me the gift of life – she gave birth to me. All through my life, she gifted me with self-discipline, toys, love, hugs, appreciation of me – she taught me to be grateful for all gifts and when possible, to share gifts with others. Every day she gave me gifts – even when she was lying non-verbal in a bed, dying slowly with Alzheimer’s. One day she died. She gave me the gift of grief and pain. On a beautiful day in June, she ceased to breathe.
June sunshine –
flowers blooming outside –
my mother dying inside
my mother on her deck
kanzen sakura 
May 08, 2019 @ 16:24:03
Oh, I understand your feelings. I wrote about my mom as well.
May 08, 2019 @ 16:48:02
Our mothers are so precious.
May 08, 2019 @ 17:23:59
Yes, they are.
May 08, 2019 @ 17:52:10
I am so sorry for your loss, Toni. Mothers are no doubt a gift to us .. I like the sensitivity with which this haibun is penned.
May 08, 2019 @ 18:04:30
Thank you Sanaa. She died three years ago and it never gets any better.
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May 08, 2019 @ 20:26:46
Toni, you are an expert on the gift of grief and pain. What a journey you and your mother have made. I love the photo of her. “Flowers blooming outside / my mother dying inside”. Yes, I know that feeling. What a wonderful piece of writing this is. You touched my heart.
May 08, 2019 @ 20:51:23
Heartrending, Toni–especially your haiku!
May 08, 2019 @ 21:27:01
“The gift of grief and pain” is making a great deal of sense to me right now. This is gift to me.
May 09, 2019 @ 00:43:56
We are all blessed to have our mothers who have entered old age. A colleague of mine passed away last year leaving a seven year old son. Whenever I think of this I feel doubly blessed to have my ma till now. Love your mom’s photo. A beautiful haibun. The end haiku’s so heartbreaking.
May 09, 2019 @ 03:08:15
It is a wonderful story in this poem how you used every given in appreciation of life itself
Much🎁love
May 09, 2019 @ 07:25:44
Curiously my mother died of alzheimers too and in her last few months failed to know who I was. However even though I am in my 80’s now I still remember the love she had for me and my brother and how precious she was.
May 09, 2019 @ 09:08:52
This a such a tender and moving poem. Grief and pain is a gift too, as we always carry our loved ones in our hearts. You depict this gift so well in your haiku.
May 09, 2019 @ 13:21:18
A beautiful haibun. I have read poems you have written about your mother before. The gift here is that this poem sings. It sings of this incredible love and devotion you had for your mother. She would have felt it.She is probably still feeling it. Very moving and wonderful.
May 09, 2019 @ 13:35:16
Thank you so much for this. Bless you.
May 09, 2019 @ 14:12:03
Your haibun made me cry, Toni. We lost our mothers around the same time, and both to dementia. We are both familiar with the gift of grief and pain.
May 09, 2019 @ 14:31:29
Yes we are. I remember when your mother died. We both lost so much of our heart.
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May 09, 2019 @ 14:35:25
But we also found a kindred spirit in each other. 🙂
May 09, 2019 @ 14:49:03
😊 ❤ we did!
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May 10, 2019 @ 08:54:48
As I’ve mentioned before, since my own mother was a small but crazed predatory reptile, Mother’s Day is just an annual mystery to me. I realize it’s different for most people, and i am genuinely sorry for your loss.
May 11, 2019 @ 19:14:25
Life and death: different sides of the same gift.
May 13, 2019 @ 14:18:01
A timely tribute..
Lovely!!