Last week’s wild weather knocked most of the glorious cherry blossoms off the trees. We found ourselves walking through a wondrous pink “snow”, and noticed the tulips filled with it.

We sent a photo of this surprising landscape to a few friends. One sent back a haiku by the Japanese poet Dosho:

Hanadori no                     A bird in the blossoms,
Kumo ni isogu ya            Hurrying to the clouds,
Ikanoburi                         A paper kite.

 

Then ANOTHER friend sent this haiku:

Spreadinga straw mat in the field
I sat and gazed
At the plum blossoms.

 

…And we found this one by Basho*:

On stones covered with spring pinks
I’d like a few drinks
And then a good snooze.

They capture that singular moment much better than our photographs.

 

Sally Schneider
Sally Schneider

 

What will be the next blossoms to fall?

 

With thanks to Susan Dworski and David Saltman.

*Basho haiku courtesy of The Essential Haiku: Versions of Basho, Buson, & Issa (Essential Poets).

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