HYPER ON A RAINY DAY

As it's another really rainy day here in New York City, I was put in mind of the following poem of mine. We had so much rain here last night that thousands and thousands of subway riders got delayed or stranded trying to get home from work last night due to flooding of the underground systems. But this poem is about a successful commute of mine to work by subway not that long ago:

Hyper on a Rainy Day

A toddler girl skips onto the dank
subway train, father in tow.

He stands, back to the door like Atlas
in rain gear, as she wiggles and laughs
holding both his hands.

Smiling gently at his daughter's antics
he softly says "Mommy gave you too much sugar
this morning. You're hyper."

Raising the perfect sun of her face
she replies "What are hyper, Daddy?"

"Like you ... moving, laughing, talking ...
not stopping ... " he replies, laughing, too.

She nods sagely without skipping a beat
in her dance that lights the rain damp car.
Here and there, a passenger's face twinkling
in amusement through the rush hour gloom.

She pauses to kiss first one
of her father's hands, and then the other.
He bends to reciprocate, his dripping
umbrella a pendulum swinging
from the crook of his arm.

Too soon he says "Are you ready to get off?"
then lifts her surely to his heart.
As they exit, she chants over her father's
shoulder "HY-per, HY-per .... kiss, kiss!"

The door closes behind his broad back.

The sun winks out.

* * * *

Resource: Poetz.com, original poetry by many authors, and calendars for poetry events around the U.S.

‘til next time, keep dreaming,

Roswila
[aka: Patricia Kelly]
****If you wish to copy or use any of my writing or poems, please email me for permission (under “View my complete profile”)****My other blog: ROSWILA’S TAROT GALLERY & JOURNAL.

ALL DAILY DREAMKU POSTED IN MAY 2006

[The card on the left is the Seven of Cups from the Rider / Waite / Smith Tarot deck.]

Be forewarned, these are mostly quite surreal and often pointed. I am still attempting to develop a decent working relationship between my dreams and the haiku form. Although I feel I've made some progress, many times I still feel either my dream or the haiku form suffer in the marriage. But I shan't give up! :-D Especially, as I have been finding that writing a haiku on an impactful dream image distills something about that image that leads to a sense of relatedness or understanding. And much more quickly than my usual very lengthy dream journaling process.

ALL DAILY DREAM HAIKU POSTED IN MAY 2006

May 31, 2006

one story buried,
another too big to print
no way out



May 30, 2006

strangers...ah!
new genes
for the old pool



May 29, 2006

the baby’s brow
is obviously Klingon
unfaithful



May 28, 2006

he finger combs
my long damp hair
heaven on earth



May 27, 2006

the frozen infant
must have heart surgery
her chances are good



May 26, 2006

the ex-priest
walks on broken glass
he won’t believe



May 25, 2006

Gordian knot –
version after version
of the Ace of Swords



May 24, 2006

makeover magic
which of the three Tarot cards
will she be?



May 23, 2006

the young man is proud
to be known by The Mob
reflected power



May 21, 2006

only in dreams:
this dirt road passes
that welcoming Inn



May 20, 2006

recently widowed
but he takes the risk
welcome to the dance



May 19, 2006

the nave echos
a mechanical bird
trembles



May 18, 2006

two dragons
on the old calendar
blasts from the past



May 17, 2006

new buildings
in old Manhattan
where is home now?



May 16, 2006

fool’s gold
she wills her lost wallet
back into being



May 15, 2006

she stands up to him
while she saves herself
hire wire act



May 14, 2006

she’s deceased
but will birth a daughter
dying into now



May 13, 2006

Dad and Mother
with a cold baby fish
hauled awake



May 12, 2006

fearful she's too old
she learns to steer the bike
getting a grip



May 11, 2006

ganesh wears
a super-hero cape
gilding the lily



May 10, 2006

the shadow paints
a harbor mural
the larger picture



May 9, 2006

she hides in the belly
of the large clay Goddess
she won't be had



May 8, 2006

the mummy won't let her
give up again
odd new friend



May 7, 2006

the blowzy starlet
cannot light the cigarette
pregnant pause



May 6, 2006

we are in danger
if the raptor eggs hatch
we shut our eyes



May 5, 2006

digging through strata:
sanskrit letters
glimmer on the walls



May 4, 2006

hitting the stalker
only changes his face --
an embrace instead



May 3, 2006

the souls of dead mice
till the dark earth
what will grow here?



May 2, 2006

her ghostly presence
permeates the void
forgotten dream



May 1, 2006

the immigrant asks
to be taught how to dance
waltzing through a dream


* * * *

Resource: Haiku Painting and Artwork by Zolo, many original haiga (illustrated haiku) and other artwork. I'm hoping eventually to do some haiga of my own, dream-based and otherwise, so I find sites like these especially inspiring.

‘til next time, keep dreaming,

Roswila
[aka: Patricia Kelly]
****If you wish to copy or use any of my writing or poems, please email me for permission (under “View my complete profile”)****My other blog: ROSWILA’S TAROT GALLERY & JOURNAL.

URBAN HAIKU

[New York, New York; photo courtesy of Webshots.com]

“Urban haiku” is how a friend of mine refers to my haiku written about city scenes. I think that makes a nice distinction between these haiku and the more commonly known nature-themed haiku. See my previous post called "Scifaiku" for some of my reasoning on the particulars of the haiku form.

Most of the urban haiku below were written while commuting to work by cab last fall and winter; therefore, all the references to traffic and vehicles.

torn blue recycle bag:
the ants trail
in and out

*

March winds –
traffic breezes along
until the tunnel

*

wild cab ride
barely legible
haiku notes

*

crossing the river:
a sight seeing bus
blocks the view

*

traffic idles:
brown leaves tremble
on the retainer wall

*

the driver and I
bundled and hushed
first snow fall

*

traffic halts
a bevy of cops
search the truck

*

shaft of sunlight
she displays her cardboard
homeless sign

*

after the tunnel:
half moon smudged
by clouds

*

traffic as usual –
the bittersweet comfort
of old songs

*

just shy of full:
the afternoon moon
above the overpass

*

sodas, cell phones,
and back packs
after school stroll

*

in tree of heaven’s
shadows
hot dog vendor

*

turning towards home
refracted winter light
fills the cab

*

open cab door:
oh, the shower
of golden leaves!

*

coming home –
a brown leaf curled
in the last blooms

*

smoke obscures the skyline a lone star

[The last above is a form that some haiku writers are using.
It echos how Japanese haiku look in their original calligraphy
only the single lines are vertical.]

* * * *

There are also two posts here about haiku based on dreams: DREAM HAIKU SERIES, and DREAM MOSAICS: WRITING HAIKU BASED ON DREAMS. And, of course, there’s the DAILY DREAM HAIKU posted to the top of this sidebar.

Resource: Haigaonline, a lovely site with haiga (illustrated haiku).

‘til next time, keep dreaming,

Roswila
[aka: Patricia Kelly]
****If you wish to copy or use any of my writing or poems, please email me for permission (under “View my complete profile”)****My other blog: ROSWILA’S TAROT GALLERY & JOURNAL.

A LUCID DREAM

Lucid dreaming is being aware while you are still asleep and dreaming, that you are dreaming. There’s a link at the bottom of this post to more in depth information on what lucid dreaming is.
It’s a skill that I gather can be learned, though some folk do it spontaneously.

I’ve always had a sort of partial lucidity in that when a dream becomes nightmarish - rarely, but it does happen - then I realize I’m dreaming and force myself to actually wake up. I spent many months, on and off, years back, trying to more fully develop the skill of lucid dreaming, as the literature makes some enticing claims for using it for self-healing and exploration. But I never got beyond a slightly more lucid level than the one I have when I wake myself from nightmares. Except this one lucid incident I share below:

As I come to the crossroads,
I recognize the wide street before me
as the one that leads to the boulevard
that will finally take me home.
The street lamps cast a comforting golden glow.
My heart and mind lighten.

As I lift my arms to fly and my feet leave the sidewalk,
I realize I CAN’T fly! I’m DREAMING! I am elated.
I remembered to remember I am dreaming.
The thrill runs through me top to toe. I am lucid!
And the night and street disappear.
I am suspended in a soft cloud, no ground beneath my feet;
no buildings, trees, or lamp lights glow around me.
I look around me puzzled, still fully aware I am dreaming
and that I can still do something with this dream,
if I wish. What should I do? What do I want?
I have NO idea! A wry amusement over-rides elation:
How like me to finally get what I want
and not have the vaguest idea
what to DO with it!

* * * *

Resource: DreamViews, A Lucid Dreaming Forum.

‘til next time, keep dreaming,

Roswila
[aka: Patricia Kelly]
****If you wish to copy or use any of my writing or poems, please email me for permission (under “View my complete profile”)****My other blog: ROSWILA’S TAROT GALLERY & JOURNAL.