One of the things that I find most notable about haiku is how western haiku in particular, has changed over time. Traditional Japanese haiku were written with what has been described in English as “word sounds” called onji in Japanese. These are different than English syllables which means that when haiku was first written in English, it had to change to fit the language. Western … Continue reading Change
from the greenhouse no one to see a cold sun rising **** It is a cold morning in Southeast Texas. The temperature went down to 49 degrees F overnight. For the gulf coast, that feels cold. A weather front came through last evening and brought the cold north wind with it. Tomorrow morning may be even colder. As I stood in the doorway of our … Continue reading Non-Self
between peaks- morning mist shelters the valley **** banana leaves yellow and green winter damage **** alone- on a branch a bluebird **** boy on an old bike a squeak each time the pedals go around **** a pair of hawks float in a forest fire sky evening breeze Continue reading The World as we See It
cat on a fence faintly its voice **** through the eyeholes a bleached white skull admits the desert **** all is emptiness the beauty of a beach and three clouds **** painted on the wind the sound of sandhill cranes consumes me **** a breeze teases dew on the marigolds native bees **** deserted park wind moving an empty swing squeak squeak Continue reading Monday Morning Haiku
As I walked out my back door this morning I saw peach colored clouds in the sky. Within minutes the color disappeared. I quickly wrote this haiku in response: peach colored clouds the rising sun removes illusion ************* If you know some meteorology, you will be aware that clouds have no color at all because they’re made up of water. The colors come from reflecting … Continue reading More Inspiration
I’ve been writing some new haiku this week. I hope you like them. twilight lightning clouds gather over the prairie blood moon flowing on the water sweeping errant grass from the steps waving flower shadows block out the sun larger than life- this wind sea fog- bringing the gulf to my door a leaf falls joining mushrooms on the ground Continue reading New haiku
I love writing haiku. There are times when nothing inspires me to write and other times when inspiration just happens all around me. Here are five haiku that I wrote this morning. on a spring breeze the last of winters grasp floats away **** frost on the grass winter leaves it’s scent behind **** a bee buzzes happy to be floating among the flowers **** … Continue reading And Yet Again…
About 20 to 25 years ago, I became interested in Buddhism. There was a meditation center in my hometown, and I started going there to learn how to meditate. I read lots of books and did research online. I was fairly serious about it for a while and then I slacked off. Even though I wasn’t practicing, Buddhism was always in the back of my … Continue reading On Buddhism
The Walk for Peace, by the Buddhist monks from Fort Worth Texas to Washington D.C. has been in the news everywhere. Now that it has concluded, I hope that people will remember it, and what it stood for. Before I go on, I’d like to post a disclaimer: I am not a professional, or an expert on anything I write. What I write here and … Continue reading A Little Mindfulness Goes A Long Way
asphalt gray sky rain drops leaking out wetting the asphalt **** porch cat eats and poops nothing more **** bird of paradise colorful flowers waiting inside **** melody of a string quartet rising to the sky Continue reading Some Haiku
This time of year in southeast Texas can be cold and that interferes with the outside things we like to do. In fact, we just went through a cold spell with night time temperatures down in the low 20’s on a couple nights. I almost felt like we were back in Minnesota. So we look for things to do in the house. I’ve been making … Continue reading February 2nd
How often have we heard or read somewhere that people are in search of something greater than themselves? How often have we searched for that too? People look to God, or Gods, or other things to find meaning in life because we feel lost, or alone and we ask, is this all there is? We look to an afterlife that many religions proclaim as something … Continue reading Something Greater Than Myself
I may have written about this before, considering I have written about so many things on this blog, it’s often hard to recall if I have or not. So, onward and upward! The cello, by far, is my favorite musical instrument. It has such an expressive and emotional sound, that in the right hands can be spiritual in its presentation. I really mean that. It … Continue reading The Cello
The noisy black birds descend on the feed tray; the sun shining on their glossy feathers, the red and yellow wing stripes showing off their pride. They fight over the choicest morsels, while spreading the gossip of the yard. The smaller birds, rusty breast and blue backs and wings come for the meal worms which the kind humans have left for them. They are taking … Continue reading A Day
sacredness the deepest part of the mind In my 30’s I came to a point where I thought I wanted to be a Christian. I suppose it was because I went through a particularly rough patch in my life and Christianity was all I knew about religion. So I studied the Bible from the point of view of wanting to know if it was God’s … Continue reading Sacredness
Wind in the Trees, a haiku journal 