At the Pub for Poets, d’Verse, Frank J. Tassone is revisiting Jisei, or Japanes Death Poems. How delightful! Just the other day I mentioned a book entitled Japanese Death Poems, compiled by Yoel Hoffman, as an all time favorite book of poetry. Today Frank mentioned a form for the genre I am not familiar with, gembun, which he defined as a one-sentence haibun; a little digging showed me that some restrict it to ten words. I tried it for today’s prompt, and covered bases by having the prose part of my haibun be one American sentence (17 syllables) of ten words. This piece is a might dark for the genre but it’s where the prompt led. Go to d’Verse for more.
Behind the veil, just beyond reach, multitudes of isolated ghosts.
such a cold embrace;
winter’s unmasking reveals
spring as long held myth
Lovely piece – the prose is like an opening chord that echoes through the bleakness of the haiku.
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Thank you for your comments. This is bleak and I realize not a great example of a death poem (at least I hope not!) but that’s what I wrote, a covid commentary in thin disguise.
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Very beautifully dark.
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Thank you.
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a true haiku in every chilling aspect … with a skilful nod to our current crisis
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Thank you.
Yeah. The ongoing crisis…
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That final winter is a long one.
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That’s what they say.
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Very interesting… Unmasking will surely prolong spring and return to life again!
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When you look beyond the veil you’re likely to see anything, perhaps even this. Chilly and dark, it reminds me of outer space.
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I shuddered. It’s so slightly creepy!
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I like this, despite it’s wintry tone.
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I agree with Peter about the prose being a chord that echoes through the bleakness of the haiku. I love this kind of haibun.
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The chill is real. (K)
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Yep.
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Complementary American Sentence / haiku combo; bot beautifully executed response to prompt!
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BOTH!
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Thanks!
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The “myth” of spring at the beginning of winter–exactly what it feels like!
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But spring always comes through. Right?
Thanks for coming by.
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The “cold embrace” felt very real, thanks to your beautifully crafted imagery. Nicely done 🙂
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Thank you.
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Wonderful PSD. Thoroughly enjoyed it.
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Ooops **poem, not PSD?
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Let’s go with poem. (Now I can stop wracking my brains for the meaning of PSD)
Thank you, either way, I appreciate the visit.
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I think that winter is a bit like death itself.
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Yep, and fodder for poets.
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This is beautifully done. I’m not always a fan of these brief forms. I like how Peter phrased it–that the first sentence here is like the opening chord.
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Thank you.
I hadn’t heard of gembun so had to give it a go. I find haiku takes more effort to write than other longer forms, and I am never convinced it’s “finished” or in it’s best form. So another fine challenge from the Pub!
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