Moonstruck enough, haijin? Congratulations to last week’s contributors:
Haikai Challenge Participants| 1. the real cie 2. Tessa 3. Jules | 4. Linda Lee Lyberg 5. Deborah 6. Janice | 7. Revived Writer |
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Ultreya!
Tomorrow, the United States celebrates Memorial Day. Officially established in 1968 by an act of Congress, the day commemorates those US military personnel that sacrificed their lives in the line of duty. Unofficially it marks the unofficial beginning of summer.
How appropriate, then, that today in the New York Metropolitan area, the temperatures have reached 87 degrees F!
So what does a fawn have to do with Memorial Day and summer? Consider this: death and birth exemplify the complementary opposites embodied by the tai chi. “Those not busy being born are busy dying,” Bob Dylan (who celebrated his 78th birthday on Thursday) sang. While many of us may not feel comfortable thinking about it, death is an important part of life. Without death, how could new life emerge? The idea of memorial assumes a special significance when we consider how we owe the dead the very space and time in which we live our lives.
That’s why this week’s summer kigo, fawn (Kanoko), carries a special meaning. The deer have returned to my own backyard, of course. I see them grazing in the early morning hours. New fawns accompany their mothers; soon, they will mature into the does and fawns that procreate the next generation. Thus, the cycle of life continues.
This week, write the haikai poem of your choice (haiku, senryu, haibun, tanka, haiga, renga, etc.) that alludes to the fawn (kanoko)
As always:
Here’s how the challenge works:
1. write the haikai poem of your choice.
2. post the link of your post to Mister Linky.
3. pingback by posting the link to the challenge on your site.
4. read and comment on other contributors’ posts.
Tomorrow (Memorial Day, May 27, 2019), I premier at dVerse Poets pub. My inaugural post is a Haibun Monday that focuses on the idea of memorial. I hope to see you there at 3:00PM EST. For those of you celebrating Memorial Day, may you enjoy a happy and heartfelt holiday!
Frank J. Tassone 
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