Friday, April 4, 2008

Dogwood Haiku

The Dogwoods in my neighborhood are at my favorite stage of bloom. They're still small and the petals have a pale greenish, rather ghostly color. In a week they'll be bright in their bold pinks and bridal whites but right now they have a soft, otherworldly look as they bloom on the ends of leafless branches.


Pale moonlight flowers
like souls of dead butterflies
crouch on winter limbs

Hmm...It's been awhile since I wrote one of these. Maybe float instead of crouch? What do you think? Haiku make me think of the summer we wrote many in preparation for a beach trip. Supreme silliness ensued...

10 comments:

  1. ahhhhh I miss dogwoods, and rhododendron, and azaelea.......
    Why do I live in the desert??

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  2. a beautiful haiku...i like both versions

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  3. Actualy float gives me a more vivid & soft vision than crouch which elicits a hard,harse image. Love Haiku & the dogwoods . Are u familar with this legend of the dogwood?

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  4. I love writing hiku, it seems Im only good for a few line of poetry, then it all turns to fluff.

    Beautiful pictures, and a beautiful hiku. I particularly liked the image of the flowers as souls of dead butterflies. Kind of a dark image for spring.. but I like it.

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  5. Yeah, definitely "float" over "crouch", though crouch goes with the darker allusions, and float is more ethereal.

    I can never hear the word "Haiku" without thinking of Robin Williams:

    "Red sand between my
    toes. Summer vacation in
    outer space.
    -That was a Martian haiku!"

    Beautiful picture on your header of the dogwoods - I love them when they're still a bit green too!

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  6. fairies nest - I have TAGGED you! You have to go to my blog to see how the tagging works. you must post 6 bits of information about yourself, and then tag 3 more people!!!!
    :0)

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  7. That is a beautiful dogwood! Love the dolls you've been making lately!

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  8. I love the dogwood motif on your banner! great photo. and those beach haikus were in a class, or perhaps glass, by themselves!

    Here's a new one for this season, and season's past:

    sweet soft soaking rain
    beach balls bouncing by again
    alliterate, Cin!

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