On Fri, Aug 5, 2011 at 4:12 PM, FARIDA JONGMAN wrote:
Hi Chris etal...First of all, here's my dedication poem to Cricket:
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old salt . . .
pet iguana on his shoulder
flicks a Cricket lighter
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I really enjoyed the total experience of the 5th Purdy Fest. Only a few weeks prior to this liberating camping experience, I wrote:
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subway platform
"have you also lost your way,
little pigeon?"
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The poem (although in the style of the great Haiku Master Kobayashi ISSA (1763-1827) shows that the camping trip was a much needed rest after the hectic life in the Big Smoke.(Toronto) Ok, just one short aside: Issa (a nickname meaning "cup of tea") wrote hundreds of poems about the smallest creatures, insects especially, but it is that spirit I tried to capture. Here's my favourite of Issa:
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Even with insects
some can sing
some can't.
Issa
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Your hospitality Chris, has no bounds. To invite campers on word of mouth only, is an act of trust that exemplifies your Zen like spirit. Without guarantee that campers will abide by even the most basic rules, that is indeed unheard of in this now, dare I say it< in this post 911 world of diminishing personal freedom.
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ZenRiver Gardens....
crickets
turn it up a notch
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Your directions...that's one for the books! It makes me smile even now, a week later. When I emailed: "How do I get to your place?" I meant ZRG, but (logically) you replied that Main Street isn't the "main street" in Marmora, and suggested to jus go directly to ZRG and set up camp. But how to get to ZRG? I figured, I'll drive up to Malone and will look for signs! While driving up Delora Rd, a car sneaked up on my bumper at a good clip. I motioned the driver to pass me, instead the motorist drove up parallel to me and motioned, just like in the movies, to pull over. Unbeknownst to both, it was right at the entrance to Quarry Rd and to ZRG! I walked over to the driver's site and the lady rolled down the window. Now the rolls were turned and I now I felt like "Smokey the Bear" (ooops,that shows my age!) She asked me: "Are you looking for ZenRiverGardens?" She said her name was Anna Plesums. I recognized the name from Haiku Canada Membership lists since I had been its secretary for a dozen years until last year, but we had never met in person. Anna suggested that I follow her because she has a map and has been to PurdyFest before. And on a good clip (Good gracious, slow down Dale Earheart) I followed her right by Quarry Road. Down the road we did a U-turn and eventually we arrived.
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roused
by a gentle tap
from the weeping willow
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For Jim Larwill, who totally transfixed me with his Friday evening's performance of "Birdman/Stoneman" I wrote:
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out of the roots
of a toppled aspen
a crow flies up
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And for Anna Yin I wrote:
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on a boulder
fleetingly the shadow
of a butterfly
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Chris, about the "Reading in the Park"...I have always enjoyed poetry in an outdoor setting. Poetry is made to be read outdoors instead of sterile library rooms. Bravo for organizing this important segment of PurdyFest. Just a thought: why didn't anyone,including myself, not ask you Chris to read? Would have loved it, but it proves one thing, you are fair and square the archetype of humbleness and I salute you for it. (But would have loved hearing your "Worm picking" poem as it echoes in my own "wormpicker's flashlight" which I read around the campfire.
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setting it free
the ladybug reveals
its true wings
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It was a pleasure launching my haiku chapbook "The Melancholy Accordionist" (King's Road Press,Hexagram Series,Marco Fraticelli Publisher) at the campfire.
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mosquitoes....
stepping into the smoke
of the campfire
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The book officially was launched during the May 2011 Haiku Canada Conference in St.John's,NFLD,this 2nd launch was truly inspiring, and I thank you for giving me that opportunity. The setting could not have been more beautiful. A night of no moon, even the Milky Way was clearly visible. The last time I had seen such a magnificent sky was during my sailing days out on the ocean...
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once more
the old cherry tree
sheds its age
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I tried to read the text and kept creeping closer to the campfire. Jim's "miners' cap" saved the day as I now was able to do justice to the printed word. At that point almost seared my eayebrows right of my face!In the middle of my reading, Simon uttered an unforgettable phrase:
STAR BREAK!
That in itself is Haiku. In just two words, Simon managed to put everything in perspective.
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stargazing
somewhere someone
whistles Dixie
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Poetry Power!!!Hans
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