Renga With Basho #9 A Mark On The Wall

path of the sun
the hollyhock leans into
early summer rain

shallow roots struggling
for a deeper ballast

don’t be like me
even though we’re like the melon
split in two

neglected and forgotten
our relationship  decays

wait awhile
cut the soy beans to the sound
of monks beating bowls

sync the rhythm of our lives
press my heart to yours

summer rain
where the poem card peeled off
a mark on the wall

your words scaring my heart
crumbling tear stained paper

building a bridge
between snow-covered mountains
white egrets

flimsy patch  bares its limit
broken threads dangle loosely

plovers fly away
the evening grows later with
cold mountain winds

our hands linger momentarily
last touch as we separate

© Matsuo Basho (Tr. Jane Reichhold, taken from: Basho, the complete haiku)

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