Tanka poems by Kayla

dusk

as light fades away

images follow

a world of sounds

and spots in the darkness



everyday

he sits near a window

always reading something

as i walk by we exchange waves

another day welcomed



summer

a hot humid nasty night

i sit alone

listening to the clock

tick away the darkness



last spring

the three of us threw stones

into the river

now i stand here alone

with a white stone in hand



spring surprise

the scent of hyacinth

perfuming the yard

not knowing they bloomed

until i smelt them



passing me in the darkness

the dark form of a woman

we exchange warm hello's

without any more words

she walks into the night



his first car

parked in the side yard

since it's retirement

sinks into the ground

a pigeon colored gravestone



avalon beach

she walks on the edge

of america

barefooted

a real jersey girl



atlantic ocean

moss green colored waves

ebb and flow

like our need

to breath in and to breath out



all grown up

the children who swung

from the tire swing

i carry the dry rotted tire

and rope to the curb



up all night

composing a poem

about the universe

sleeping on a pillow of stars

drifting toward the sun

Tanka poems by Kayla

I thought i would explain one of my tanka poems for those not familiar with the many ways that they may be inspired .  My father was visited daily by a large white fallow cat that he nursed back to reasonable health.  That cat  he named puss,loved my father and would come from the woods to be with him.  The last time that i saw this cat he was sitting on top of a picnic table.  Years later i had this experience:


cleaning his face

on top of a picnic bench

a large white cat

my father's puss

raised from the dead



side yard

pigeons lift off flying

in circles

the path that my life

often takes



rabbit chewing clover

a hawk circles

overhead

such a delicate balance

this life of ours



dim stars overhead

bright flashes of fireflies

in the hedgerow

a car's headlights

wash out this whole scene

Tanka poems by Kayla

train station

while a mockingbird sings

we sit and we wait

time moves toward us

i watch as time moves away around the bend



first day of spring

a rabbit gathers withered weeds

for her nest

no need for prenatal care

or an OBGYN



winter indoors

where does she come from?

this shield bug

walking across

the kitchen wall



dusk

one last crow descends

onto a poplar

she pulls

in the darkness

Tanka poems by Kayla

sparrow gets away

the calico cat

flicks her tail

signaling

another day gone bad



not by tragedy

nor fear, nor evil

unconcerned

the honey bee collects her honey

the mockingbird sings her song



night stillness

hearing deer move

through the darkness

leaves rustling

and sticks cracking



spring

seeing purple crocus

peeking through brown grasses

such beauty

from tiny seeds



pine tree branch

a red tail hawk looking at me

me looking back

pleased

to share her space



bright

beautiful baby blue

summer sky

the color

of her eyes



a worm

struggles on the sidewalk

pushing away

the terrible effects

of the sun



through woodlands

through mountains

on our life's journey

through all that's beautiful

we nourish our spirit



a special needs

little girl struggles to walk

our smiles embrace

i want to hug her

i want to heal her



words on a tomb stone

as i am now

you shall be

prepare in time

to follow me

Tanka poems by Kayla

a climb to the top

of our scrubpine world

blueberry hill

where you can see into the moment

and find that quiet place within



a lonely moon

above the trees

seen through these old eyes

so many moons

so many memories



the moon rises

above the trees

where we last met

i long for you to come

even as the moon  sets



overcast skies

its been raining

for days

my mood getting gloomy

i wonder when will it stop



our dog puddles

her first litter snuggles

close to her

somehow she knows

how to care for her puppies


for information on how to write Tanga click on http://www.tankaonline.com/

for Tanga poems from K.Kei click on http://www.kujakupoet.blogspot.com/

Making Handmade Books: The Book As Place

Making Handmade Books: The Book As Place: "One thing I did not take into account when I went back to school was how much I relied on the physical structure of my artist's books to gro..."

Making Handmade Books: Lessons from The Snake Book

Making Handmade Books: Lessons from The Snake Book: "I've made the snake book (MHB, 39) many times, but last Friday I had an epiphany about it. A small one, but a useful one to me. The snake bo..."

Making Handmade Books: Content & Layout: Mini Origami Book

Making Handmade Books: Content & Layout: Mini Origami Book: "Vladimir Nabokov believed that there is 'a kind of delicate meeting place between imagination and knowledge, a point, arrived at by diminish..."

Haiku by Kayla

color of the sun

daffodils shine

through withered weeds



cold spring

robins huddle together

in the pine hay



spring rains

the puddles filling up

with starlings



spring hedgerow

sparrow

on sparrow



dull brown grasses

bright violet crocus

gather nearby



spring morning

yellow daffodils

bow to the wind



on the hedgerow

on the air

the scent of honeysuckle



neighborhood cat

roaming out of the darkness

into the darkness



singing in the rain

a mockingbird

in the hedgerow



this season

more clover

more rabbits



campfire

glimpses of faces

come and go



overcast sky

hearing honking geese

overhead



tossed bread

sparrows gather

on the sidewalk



campfire

snapping and popping

my thoughts

Double stars

Viewing double stars is another passion !  whenever possible I take my little refactor telescope out under a dark night sky to split double star systems.  I enjoy the search for them using star maps and binoculars.  I love the different colors and magnitude contrast, you would have to hunt one down and see for yourself to really appreciate how lovely these little gems are. 

Information about double stars can be found at http://www.skyandtelescope.com/

Whymsicallotus: Journal pages continued...

Whymsicallotus: Journal pages continued...: "I thought I would post a few more pages before going to bed... ; ) This next one is an example of what I do when I get frustrated with a pa..."

Making Handmade Books: Mini Origami Book

Making Handmade Books: Mini Origami Book: "Origami paper sometimes comes with the diagrams to make this little book. In 1997, I would have included it in Creating Handmade Books, but ..."

Queen Annes' lace by Kayla

Softly swaying in sunshine,

a titanium white girly lace

supported by a delicate concentric structure

like the bones of an umbrella,

that connects at its center ,

to a tall green apple colored stem

providing a handy footpath

for various walking insects to explore,

at the top of this space needle,

where the color green turns to white,

small insects , some black, some brown,

examine the fragile lace for food,

black flies, hornets, and wasps

come and go,

landing or lifting off

from their bowl shaped heliport.

Fishing on the lake a poem by Kayla

A large oak
with copious green leaves
cast a shadow

over the black
coffee colored
still lake water

its smooth surface
rippled
by a passing breeze

that carries a leaf
and lays it down
on the shadowy water

where a bluegill
incessantly
slurps at it

its attention
piqued
by the leaf

I offer my best
hand tied fuzzy
black fly

dropping it
atop
the floating leaf

then teasing the line abit,
whack!
the bright yellow line pulls

and jerks my hand
every movement
of the runaway felt

carefully
I ease her in
gently removing

from her mouth
that which
caused her fear

and holding her
in the shallow water
until calmed

I release her
to live
freely.

Tanka poems by Kayla

In the stillness of night

I hear a distant train whistle,

a sound so haunting,

freeing memories of father,

a sound fading into darkness.


                2

In the front yard

the bikes rest against

the pine tree,

all winter, the doll

in the pine hay.


           3

Corner of the yard,

the rusted tricycle

overgrown with weeds,

only squirrels

play there now.


            4

The cabin empty

everything still,

everything quiet,

the lonely swan drifts on the lake

until the children return.

             5


On the dresser table,

my mother's ring

now cold,

warm memories of her

live on.



Information on writting Tanka can be found at http://www.tankaonline.com/

A poem by Kayla "She is An Eagle"

She is an eagle

and love her sky,

soaring over fields

singing lullabies,

rising circles of silence

she embraces the sky,

in ecstasy

she will forever fly.

Hand made books Abecedary-star names

Inspired by Alisa Golden's tips on format and content I thought of making a Abecedary using stars names.  Many of these stars are bright and can be seen "naked eye" .  I choose a black background for large paper stars that would contain the name of a star. Each paper star is given the actual color of the star based on its temperature .  The choice of black for the background represents the night sky.
I used a concertina format to represent star movement in both time and position.
I am working on being able to take pictures of my book so you will be able to see it .  I really enjoy working on book art! Somehow I managed to upload these pictures yea!

Collage artist Claudine Hellmuth

I have her book Collage Discovery Workshop , It is an excellent book and started me on my collage journey.  Claudine can be found at her web site :  www.collageartist.com

Making Handmade Books: When Is It Art?

Making Handmade Books: When Is It Art?: "A question came up on another blog that touched me, one that I wanted to look at: 'How do you know if it will be art when you're throug..."