Haibun: Hunter’s Moon

For Merrill’s Prompt at dVerse Poets Pub – a quadrille.  A quadrille is a poem of exactly 44 words using the prompter’s choice of words.  Today the word is “set”.

Haibun: Hunter’s Moon
“Always remember we are under the same sky, looking at the same moon.” —Maxine Lee

The sun has set and the air is cool. I watch the moon rise. It is a full hunter moon. An owl drifts overhead and I feel its passing in the air.
the moon is so bright
I can see like
a spotlight shines

Hunters Moon

Autumn is Coming

For Mish’s prompt at dVerse, using the art of Beverly Dyer.

Zen Tree by Beverly Dyer

Autumn is Coming
“Delicious autumn! My very soul is wedded to it, and if I were a bird I would fly about the earth seeking the successive autumns.”- George Eliot

in the midst of the forest,
autumn is coming.
vines are already golden
and trees are just starting to flaunt
that one red leaf.
up in the pine tree
the owl sits observing it all.
he watches the squirrels and chipmunks
scurrying about putting away
acorns and hickory nuts.
autumn is coming,
he hoots.
and lifting his wings he glides
over all, observing..

 

Owl by Beverly Dyer

Night Comes

For Kim’s prompt over at Real Toads, about the poetic form pastoral. She wants us to write a poem about night coming in the style of Jane Kenyon, ‘Let Evening Come’, “to inspire your pastoral poems this weekend” No more than six tercets. I have tried. I love writing about the night in the summer, any time of year!

Night Comes
“In the trees the night wind stirs, bringing the leaves to life, endowing them with speech; the electric lights illuminate the green branches from the under side, translating them into a new language.” ― E.B. White

in the afternoon the day winds down –
the shadows grow long winds gently slough
and the bees return to their hives.

toward the dark of the day
owls awaken and their sleepy eyes grow bright!
they stretch their wings and shuffle their feet.

rabbits cease their nibbling and head to their nests,
shadows grow longer and cross the road
to meet the cows lowing in the fields, heading to the barns.

the shadow of the moon glows white in the indigo sky
and early Venus glows. the bats come out to hunt
along with the owls and cicadas begin their buzz.

now the stars glow in the black night sky
and a rustle of the bushes as a possum
comes to the join the other night creatures for dinner.

lights snap on in the houses, bright yellow in the night.
the owl swoops down and grabs a baby rabbit
its squeal joining the buzzing of the cicadas in the night.

the night after holding its breath exhales.

 

The Owl

For Marian’s Fussy little forms prompt at Real Toads. A tricube form. three syllables per line, three lines per stanza, three stanzas per poem. Posted at Poets United Poetry Pantry

The Owl
full moon – an
owl glides in
the moonlight.

silent and
deadly – wings
extended.

mice scramble
for cover –
it’s too late.

The Moon in the Water

For Marian’s prompt at Real Toads today – “and you and I” is the prompt.

The Moon in the Water
A hot august night –
We’re sitting on the rocks by the creek.
here in this spot the creek has wandered
and just before plunging over the branches
And rocks and such
the water has pooled into a small pond
about eight feet wide and two feet deep.
Pebbles and rocks and sand
form our own private beach.
Except for the night visitors –
We are alone.
We are silent and so still a raccoon
comes up and drinks and then starts
and waddles away when he sees us.
We quietly laugh and agree
“He’ll be back” said ala Ahhhnold.
The moon flutters on the surface
of the pool – pure white on pure black.
I put my feet into the water and the moon
ripples even more, as it were laughing.
You put your arm around my shoulder
and I reach into my small shoulder bag
and give us another spray of insect repellant.
The cicadas whir and click,
an owl hoots.
A soft flutter of wings as it drifts overhead
and a soft rustling as it lands on a branch.
You and me and the moon in the night sky
and the moon in the water
and the owl in tree
and the night creatures –
Oh yes, and the neighbor’s dog
that followed us down the hill.

stock photo

Me, Walking

quilt block

Me, Walking
And on this dark night of tattered clouds
and snow and me walking –
trying to piece out this crazy quilt
of emotions confessions beseechings anger
and all you can do is repeat the same words –
all I can do is to not hear them
over and over and over again again again
until I have to escape outside
and walk in this sporadic snow under the shrouded moon –
my footsteps looking like a drunken tango
filling with snow.
muttering whywhywhy – the litany of an idiot
or a fool finding truth for the first time –
I’m sure those beings above the clouds
laugh at those like me as they pull the clouds
tighter about the moon creating darkness.
a deer breaks cover – a shadow against the snow –
an owl flies overhead
his wings beating against the snow
hunting for…just hunting for a mouse or the truth.
And on this dark night of tattered clouds
And me walking,

 

free public use image

For Margaret’s prompt today at Real Toads:  “The challenge is to write a poem using one of these fabric details OR if you have a special quilt (or memories of one) write about that instead.”   One of the blocks particularly brought up memories of my lover and I discussing his return to Japan, years ago.  http://withrealtoads.blogspot.com/2017/08/artistic-interpretations-with-margaret.html

 

 

 

Summer Moon Haiku String

Today is Open Link Night at dVerse Poets Pub. You can submit any poem of your choice, any form, no form, any subject. Come join us and find your new favorite poet. This was also linked to Poetic Bloomings.   OpenLinkNight #176

oborozuki is Japanese for hazy moon

I.
summer half moon drifts
in a sea of blue – floating
sakura petal

II.
summer night sky – I
descry through blacker branches
oborozuki

III.
luminescent pearl
worn by the night sky – baroque
purity enchants

IV.
the full moon flutters
on the surface of the pond
lone cicada sings

V.
the summer moon bursts
from behind the clouds – startled
an owl takes flight

free Getty Image for non-commercial use