I Spy A Crane, February 2010, photo © 2010 by Jim. All rights reserved.
[insert your haiku here]
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Note: Jim took this photo of two cranes in the field near the house. I liked how the photo came out, soft around the edges. One of the cranes is hard to see; it’s behind branches. I wanted to write a haiku but didn’t have time. I invite anyone else out there to write a haiku, or a caption, or anything you want, inspired by the cranes.
Hello from Mount Fuji, Japan. I just found red Ravine (through a roundabout web search on something to do with your original face) and want to say, thank you. Wonderful place to visit – I will come again. Please stop by my bilingual blog in this part of the world if you have time. I look forward to sharing perspectives from the mountains here – Catrien Ross.
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Hello there. How great to know that someone out there on Mt. Fuji has found us, and vice versa. I bet the search you did led to a poem by a fellow blogger and friend. The term “original face” appeared in her poem, I believe.
Yes, we will stop by your blog. Wow, bilingual? I remember when I lived in Spain that a friend of mine from Japan insisted I learn Japanese, as it sounded phonetically just like Spanish. My friend seemed to think it would be an easy language for me to learn. I don’t know. I never tried. Was it easy, hard?
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This is kind of a cop-out post. I have been burning the candle at both ends. Wanted to get something up, a photo with a simple haiku, but in the end, I couldn’t think of a haiku. When you’re under pressure, it’s hard to just throw one out.
Hopefully my life won’t be so hectic here soon. We’ll see. Always seems like January and February start off this way. I wonder why we put so much energy into the beginning of each year.
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ybonsey, you had all the words. Here is the haiku:
soft around edges
burning candle at both ends
I stop to see cranes
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ybonesy, yes, Japanese phonetics are not difficult, and neither is the grammar. But there are three writing systems, so you need to commit to writing and reading, which is not so easy. I did not find a poem using “original face,” – I was browsing through thoughts on the “face you had before you were born,” or something like that! I understand your comment about January and February – these last two months have been particularly challenging. Please do stop by my bilingual website/blog when you have time. My latest post gives some thoughts from Mount Fuji, courtesy of the Tao. I would love to see your comment there.
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ybonesy – good you acted on your muse and opened this up for others. I have been trying to act on it for a coupla days. Me busy too. I find on my 10 minute drives to Bernalillo early each morning I jot down many punch line – short poems that come from that wonderful stretch of road. A lot of birds on that route! Cranes, too. Here is one from last week, jotted on deposit slip:
Signs of hope:
Railrunner cars full of riders,
four cranes glide after.
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Gorgeous pic. Sorry I can’t do Haiku right now…all that comes is “I spy, with my little eye”…
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Turn my back and look
up ahead the quiet space is there
to rest in, I sigh.
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Alright…I bet that crane knows about as much about a haiku as I do…yb
I’ll offer the old stand-by so I can tell you something unrelated that you & Jim and QM & Liz will enjoy
(although any inebriated readers may appreciate my poem…)
roses and red, violets are blue
wandering crane in field
searches new place to poo
Now on to the serious stuff…if you’ve never seen this website, you simply must peruse…
http://awkwardfamilyphotos.com/
and if these shots don’t make you laugh…check your pulse
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Wow, breathepeace. You made magic of my words. Thanks.
treestreet and Bo, excellent. Thanks for the taking the leap. I hope to slow down enough this weekend to be able to allow some haiku to come to me also. Haiku is one thing that I can’t do unless I’m slow slow. (J, I know what you mean.)
Heather, I will definitely take a look. Love the title of the URL. Can’t wait. But now I’m going to try to hit the sack early so I can get up early.
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yb,
Here is something I found on “original face”-
The original face is a concept in Zen Buddhism. It originates in the following koan:
“What did your face look like before your parents were born?”
blue wings silent, still
winter hunger pausing flight
frightened, blur of blue
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Thanks, R3. I love the haiku! It reminds me of how one of the cranes was dancing, jumping and going on right off the patio, and we watched it like we’d watch a show. It was a show, a display, and the crane looked both frightened and like he was trying to fright. blur of blue.
Linda Lupowitz also wrote a poem and post based on that koan. Here’s the link: The Face You Wore Before You Were Born [LINK]. At the end she talks about the koan.
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[…] on Redravine I didn’t want to lose this poem I posted on red Ravine in response to a haiku request from my friend […]
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sent by Mimbres Man
to the Platte River in Spring
to live with the cranes
I’m sorry. That’s all I can say. Pressure man. Barin Beard linked me to this blog because I’m going to Kearney, Nebraska crane watching in April. Reason enough to stop and look around.
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You need not say more. If you’re a friend of Barin (aka MM) you’re a friend of mine! What a treat, to be able to go crane-watching in the Platte. Will you be taking a mountain bike, by chance?
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Gunnar,
I was in Kearney a few weeks ago, and stood on the wooden bridge you will soon be on. Lucky you.
If you’re looking for an outing, the Great Platte River Archway spanning the Interstate is well-worth the $10 admission. I never would have gone, but a trusted friend recommended it. He was right.
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ybonesy,
I own 6 or 8 bikes, depending on how you count. They are mostly restored vintage road bikes – no mountain bikes. I will let MM ride the Crest. I watch. Hell, who am I kidding, I’m 65 years old, I have to watch.
Stop by and say hello:
http://oakwoodlife.blogspot.com/
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Teri,
We have guided outings at the Rowe Sanctuary all booked. Thanks for the suggestion.
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