Black Smoke

Artwork is Ponytail by Last Exit

Cigarette please, dear

Her health lit up in black smoke

Wafting midnight ink

We pause in the heat

Smoke and light in empty air

Cruel song in her lungs

Written For The Mag & Haiku Heights

The Dreamer's Lighthouse

Artwork: Lighthouse Dandelions by Jamie Wyeth

The lighthouse of my dreams,

So soft and sublime like a new morning,

Is rebuilt when I lay my head on the pillow;

The dandelions in my front yard rise with ease,

With promises of wild trysts from their golden lips.

Though an ominous sky threatens with black clouds,

To wash away my home brick by brick;

I have the spirit of the river,

That flows generous, smooth, and clear.

Written for Magpie Tales & O.S.I.

The Great Egg (Haiku)

Hi Sky Watchers and Haiku Lovers,

This is a sky shot image taken earlier this year, and it feels quite poignant. 

Stunning gift from God

The sunlight is ours to crack

The great, yellow egg

For Sky Watch Friday & Haiku Heights

Rekindle (O.S.I.)

Hi all,

I am writing the following poem for O.S.I. and the theme is rekindle.

May she swallow words,
From the honeycomb of life.
May the sky open its eyes;
Rain down its essence, each molecule sublime.
May it rekindle in her joie de vivre;
Leave its footprints in each vertebrae of her spine,
And climb into the hollow space within her heart.

Mistakes and lessons, recorded in her mind, gone;
Stuffed in an envelope, return to sender.
Kiss the blue dawn and bluer eyes;
Sorrows pass now without remembrance.
Oh to sing into the sun once more,
To embrace the dawn on sun-kissed shores;
Free and alive.

Story (Haiku Heights)

Hi bloggers,

I am happy to write another haiku for Haiku Heights, and the theme is story.

Blank canvas

To paint his sunrise

On her lips

The Daughters of Aman (Conclusion)

Hi all,

Here is the conclusion to my short story.  I hope you enjoy!  A link to previous chapters can be found here.

The king awaited the mysterious bird's visit for a fortnight, but it did not appear.  Then one starless night, when the moon faintly appeared from heaven, a majestic bird of silver beat her wings along palace stone.  The king bowed to her with great trepidation and bade her to speak.  

"A wicked curse has befallen thy throne, but I can heal thee of thy heartache.  I know where thy sons are."

The king rejoiced at the good news.  But when the bird commanded he climb into her beak, he refused.

"I shall not trick thee," the bird promised.  "However, if thou refuses my offer tonight, I shall not return."

Early before dawn, several farmers spotted a moon with wings.  It was the great, silver bird with the king in its beak.  They flew high into the sky until they became a speck to the naked eye.  The king was never spotted in his country again.

The king's youngest son Hollidon pardoned Aman and restored back his honor and riches.  And the daughters of Aman lived in peace though, on occasion, they enjoyed their days as exotic creatures. 

~Fin~

The Gift of Knowledge

Art By Mary Cassatt: Young Woman Picking the Fruit of Knowledge (1892)

Come hither, young chicks
I will teach you knowledge
Served from God's dish
A thousand years in my right eye
Ten thousand stories flutter from my left
I count each a blessing
Grafted from meadows and gardens
Mother Nature's window dressing

First, I will spit in your eyes
And teach you to fly
One arm outstretched then the other
Pulsing alive, the red heart revived
Receiving wondrous messages in the wind
Hello is sunrise and goodnight is sunset
And the moon is a pillow to rest and pray

Take heed when the thunderous storm growls
Never fear, it comes with an agenda
Rain fills the sky as earth becomes a soup of wisdom
To nurture, give, and receive
Where roots reveal her charm 
Springs and summers hence shall dream
Rich, in front, inspiring humanity

Written for The Mag & Sunday Whirl 

Space To Dream

The sky

Has a space

In my heart

To dream 

Happy Sky Watch All

The Daughter's of Aman (Part V)

Hi all,

Here is Part V of my tale!!  If you missed the other sections, here are Parts I, II, III, and IV.

When Prince Redinoldo beheld the Forest of Fortune, he fell to his knees and cried aloud:  "The wealth of the universe is in my possession."

A river of gold undulated beyond his feet into an endless horizon.  The branches on the trees were pregnant with prized jewels in ruby, emerald, and sapphire.  Even the insects and winged creatures appeared bejeweled with an enchanting stone.

The hare had already planned her exit and bowed before the prince in reverence:

"I shall leave thee to thy new kingdom, your highness."  The prince did not reply but found his heart was lost in a revelry of greed and lust.

"The days of my father's mourning have ended,"  he declared.  "I shall bestow greater honor and wealth to my land.  All shall bow to me!"   

But as he returned home, the forest became submerged in darkness.  It grew so dim and foggy that he could no longer see what was in front of him, and he stumbled over his feet several times. 

"Hare, I command thee to be my eyes and guide me from this wretched forest."  But the hare had slipped away beyond the darkness.  And his cry and pleas were so loud that creatures of the wood encircled him to see the spectacle.  

Now many from the rural villages heard the cries of the prince.  Some believed it was a man and others were convinced it was a ghost.  The king grew sore afraid by the rumors and feared his son's death.  

And a witness came forward and testified Amielle lingered near the forest on the day of the prince's disappearance.  The king grew wroth for he suspected Aman's daughters of evil, and he threw Gabriella and Amielle in prison.  Both sisters were threatened with starvation until they revealed the prince's location.  Only Milliana, the youngest, could roam freely and feel sunlight.

"Oh great king," she pleaded, "my heart feels great sorrow for my family's fortune."  

"I have lost two of my heirs on account of thy family.  I possess no sorrow nor pity for thee."  And the king banished her from returning to the palace walls.  But before Milliana departed, she cried:

"A great bird shall visit thee at midnight.  Do not fear the bird but whatever it asks thee, be obedient to its voice."

To Be Continued...