Blog Archives
Weird Couplets for Ending the Year
Reasonable weather will come, and it will go.
Why weather does the things it does, who can ever know?
What’s the point of running when running’s such a pain?
By running from your problems, what do you hope to gain?
A newborn calf and camel are nuzzling the same cow.
Despite its humpy little back the desert beast knows how.
A legion of angels, if I should insist,
Will stay by my side until they’re dismissed.
I have no interest, darling, in dragging out this year.
It’s almost gone—good riddance! Do I make that clear?
More Sunday’s Whirligig #245
More Pantry of Poetry and Prose #9 at Poets United
Haibun: Wisdom Is Waiting
I am following a path that leads, they say, to Willow Woman, who stands in solitude. How will I find her? Stooped and ungainly? Or singing songs that she learned from her ancestors? Songs of leaf and twig. Songs of root and branch. Songs of drought and disease. In the absence of answers to my questions, I keep moving, as I have done year after year. My one desire—I have no other—is to see Willow Woman at last, for in her, wisdom is waiting.
Autumn afternoon—
in my neighbor’s tiny yard
one red rose still blooms.
More Sunday’s Whirligig #238
More Pantry of Poetry and Prose #2 at Poets United
Confidence

A small bougainvillea brightens the new year in Yuma County, Arizona.
In the year ahead,
as long as there are blossoms,
we shall be all right.
Poem and photo © 2017 by Magical Mystical Teacher
Seeking

Sunrise on a chilly January day, Sonoran Desert, Southern Arizona
first month of the year—
seeking courage at sunrise
to take one more step
Haiku and photo © 2016 by Magical Mystical Teacher
More SkyWatch Friday
More Haiku My Heart at Recuerda Mi Corazon
More Midweek Motif at Poets United: “Courage”
Tattered

Brittlebush blossoms, early January, Sonoran Desert, Yuma County, Arizona
first days of the year—
only some tattered blossoms
on the brittlebush
Haiku © 2016 and photo © 2015 by Magical Mystical Teacher
Visiting

Metal sculpture, Cattle Track Arts Compound, Scottsdale, Arizona
first days of the year—
visiting the sculptor’s house
for the seventh time
Haiku and photo © 2016 by Magical Mystical Teacher
More Shadow Shot Sunday 2
Coat

A snowy forest in northern New Mexico
first days of the year—
even the old pine forest
puts on a new coat
Haiku © 2016 and photo © 2015 by Magical Mystical Teacher
More Haiku My Heart at Recuerda Mi Corazon
Songs

An outdoor altar at El Santuario de Chimayo, Chimayo, New Mexico
first days of the year—
a singer wakes up humming
songs he learned from stones
Haiku © 2016 and photo © 2015 by Magical Mystical Teacher
Rope

Rope on a horse-drawn wagon, Yuma Quartermaster Depot, Yuma, Arizona
first week of the year—
in my trembling hands a rope
to steady my way
Haiku © 2016 and photo © 2015 by Magical Mystical Teacher