THE MONKEY WRENCH (photo art) & FLASH FIRE (free verse dream poem) by Roswila

FLASH FIRE

two children skip ahead of us
as we amble in the late afternoon
along the old cement path,
drying grass and wheat-like fronds
poking up from every crack

she stops suddenly, setting fronds
to waving and dropping their seeds
did she see something in the confusion
of the browning grasses?
no, she's rounding on me, dressing
me down faster than an elevator
in free fall

defense! my immediate instinct
but I hold my tongue well back
from that dangerous front
and gently assert that it may not
be good for the children
to witness this sort of anger

her rage promptly fragments
raining hotly down around us
and waking me from this odd dream

just what was the point of all
that fulminating anyway? I roll over
into sleep and a new dream, leaving
her to deal with any fall out
from her flash fire alone


[free verse poem on a dream of 10-31-13. Well, I did dream it on Halloween night, so I guess I could say the devil made me do it. But seriously, I'm still as puzzled by this dream as I was when I briefly woke from it in the night. The woman was someone I actually know, though the children were non-specific, vague presences. Though I have to admit to having some interesting associations as I type these comments right now. Photo art "The Monkey Wrench" (8-20-09) by Roswila]

BRIEF INTRODUCTION TO DREAMKU (& PHOTOS): The dream-based poems posted on this blog -- dreamku, tanka, two-liners, monoku, free verse, etc. -- are offered in the spirit of collaboration. I have done my part. Now it’s your turn to jump in and see what comes up for you. I.e., there is no right or wrong way to relate to any of these dream offerings. Even my own understandings of them change over time. And it gives me joy when a reader sees something in any of them that I have not.

Also please note that a dream poem is not intended as an interpretation of a dream, or even a complete and accurate rendering of one. It is my attempt to get down dream imagery/action that grabs me and, as I write about it, elicits my conscious written association and response. Nor do I believe that one has to remember dreams in order for them to do their work. In my understanding, we are much more than our conscious selves.

You may also note in any further reading on dreamku (the specific forms of dreamku, tanka, two-liners and monoku) you may do here, that in the beginning I stressed "showing, not telling." However, this has been changing for some time now. I now tend to "show" (the dream narrative) and cap if off with a "tell" (some reaction and/or insight I've had to the dream as I was writing about it). This pretty much applies to free verse dream poems as well.

For more in-depth exploration of the dreamku forms specifically (and one post in which I also address my photo choices):

-- very brief comparison of dreamku and haiku: DREAMKU ARE NOT HAIKU

-- a brief post about both dreamku and my photos THE AREN'TS OF DREAMKU & ACCOMPANYING DIGITAL PHOTOS.

-- detailed three-part post about dreamku: "A DREAMKU PRIMER: Writing Haiku-Like Poems About Your Night Dreams": PART ONE: Introduction & Writing Dreamku as Dream Work; PART TWO: Elements of the Haiku Form Used in Dreamku; and PART THREE: How to Write Dreamku (the second and third parts have some overlap).

-- a short up-dating post about the three-part "A DREAMKU PRIMER" -- Important Up-date to A DREAMKU PRIMER....".

* * * *

‘til next time, keep dreaming,






If you wish to copy or use any of my writing or poems, please email me for permission (under “View my complete profile”). Roswila's connections & other blogs: Charter Member of the United Haiku and Tanka Society (UHTS); ROSWILA’S TAROT GALLERY & JOURNAL; ROSWILA’S TAIGA TAROT; and TRYING TO HOLD A BOX OF LIGHT.

PASSAGEWAY (photo) & DECORATING THE DIVE (free verse dream poem) by Roswila

DECORATING THE DIVE

ah, good! it's still here, that odd hallway
I'd begun to think I'd imagined, that ends
in the other dimension, but it is real
and my friends and I slip through
with much delight
we commune happily with another friend
who entered this other side so long ago
and stayed, much to our sorrow
she tells us it's really no big deal
to make the dive into and out of
this alternate space,
simply treat the hallway
like a pool, aim, and off you go
that even the sides of the hallway hang
like a pool's containing walls,
wavering with ambient light
as one floats or speeds past
maybe I should make an effort,
I think, to somehow decorate
those wide walls of passage,
find some way to artfully display
small paintings and other chachkis*
in that changing light so there will be
intriguing things to peruse on any future
ill-conceived or wandering unfocussed dive


[free verse poem on a dream of 10-31-13. "Chachkis" -- one of several ways I've seen of spelling the Yiddish word for trinkets and baubles of little monetary worth, but often of sentimental value. I associate the other dimension in this dream to death, which is not surprising given I had this dream on Halloween night. But I have had at least one other dream that I recall of visiting "the other side." That old dream was more about calming my fears that my then recently deceased friend was still suffering after her death and this current dream's focus seems to be largely on the "passing over" itself. Photo "Passageway" (9-23-13) by Roswila; and, yes, it's the same photo I posted yesterday, in its original colors]

BRIEF INTRODUCTION TO DREAMKU (& PHOTOS): The dream-based poems posted on this blog -- dreamku, tanka, two-liners, monoku, free verse, etc. -- are offered in the spirit of collaboration. I have done my part. Now it’s your turn to jump in and see what comes up for you. I.e., there is no right or wrong way to relate to any of these dream offerings. Even my own understandings of them change over time. And it gives me joy when a reader sees something in any of them that I have not.

Also please note that a dream poem is not intended as an interpretation of a dream, or even a complete and accurate rendering of one. It is my attempt to get down dream imagery/action that grabs me and, as I write about it, elicits my conscious written association and response. Nor do I believe that one has to remember dreams in order for them to do their work. In my understanding, we are much more than our conscious selves.

You may also note in any further reading on dreamku (the specific forms of dreamku, tanka, two-liners and monoku) you may do here, that in the beginning I stressed "showing, not telling." However, this has been changing for some time now. I now tend to "show" (the dream narrative) and cap if off with a "tell" (some reaction and/or insight I've had to the dream as I was writing about it). This pretty much applies to free verse dream poems as well.

For more in-depth exploration of the dreamku forms specifically (and one post in which I also address my photo choices):

-- very brief comparison of dreamku and haiku: DREAMKU ARE NOT HAIKU

-- a brief post about both dreamku and my photos THE AREN'TS OF DREAMKU & ACCOMPANYING DIGITAL PHOTOS.

-- detailed three-part post about dreamku: "A DREAMKU PRIMER: Writing Haiku-Like Poems About Your Night Dreams": PART ONE: Introduction & Writing Dreamku as Dream Work; PART TWO: Elements of the Haiku Form Used in Dreamku; and PART THREE: How to Write Dreamku (the second and third parts have some overlap).

-- a short up-dating post about the three-part "A DREAMKU PRIMER" -- Important Up-date to A DREAMKU PRIMER....".

* * * *

‘til next time, keep dreaming,






If you wish to copy or use any of my writing or poems, please email me for permission (under “View my complete profile”). Roswila's connections & other blogs: Charter Member of the United Haiku and Tanka Society (UHTS); ROSWILA’S TAROT GALLERY & JOURNAL; ROSWILA’S TAIGA TAROT; and TRYING TO HOLD A BOX OF LIGHT.

AN AUTUMN WIND (photo) & HALLOWEEN DREAMING (dream-scifaiku) by Roswila

HALLOWEEN DREAMING

tumbling from the sky
with a charred underside
the moon or UFO?

* * * *

the tsunami's arch
over golden poplar trees
her final psi-mail

* * * *

the Fey revel
watching the wild floods
drenched magnolia harbor


[In the spirit of Halloween three of my dream-based scifaiku written in 2008. Photo "An Autumn Wind" (9-23-13) by Roswila]

BRIEF INTRODUCTION TO DREAMKU (& PHOTOS): The dream-based poems posted on this blog -- dreamku, tanka, two-liners, monoku, free verse, etc. -- are offered in the spirit of collaboration. I have done my part. Now it’s your turn to jump in and see what comes up for you. I.e., there is no right or wrong way to relate to any of these dream offerings. Even my own understandings of them change over time. And it gives me joy when a reader sees something in any of them that I have not.

Also please note that a dream poem is not intended as an interpretation of a dream, or even a complete and accurate rendering of one. It is my attempt to get down dream imagery/action that grabs me and, as I write about it, elicits my conscious written association and response. Nor do I believe that one has to remember dreams in order for them to do their work. In my understanding, we are much more than our conscious selves.

You may also note in any further reading on dreamku (the specific forms of dreamku, tanka, two-liners and monoku) you may do here, that in the beginning I stressed "showing, not telling." However, this has been changing for some time now. I now tend to "show" (the dream narrative) and cap if off with a "tell" (some reaction and/or insight I've had to the dream as I was writing about it). This pretty much applies to free verse dream poems as well.

For more in-depth exploration of the dreamku forms specifically (and one post in which I also address my photo choices):

-- very brief comparison of dreamku and haiku: DREAMKU ARE NOT HAIKU

-- a brief post about both dreamku and my photos THE AREN'TS OF DREAMKU & ACCOMPANYING DIGITAL PHOTOS.

-- detailed three-part post about dreamku: "A DREAMKU PRIMER: Writing Haiku-Like Poems About Your Night Dreams": PART ONE: Introduction & Writing Dreamku as Dream Work; PART TWO: Elements of the Haiku Form Used in Dreamku; and PART THREE: How to Write Dreamku (the second and third parts have some overlap).

-- a short up-dating post about the three-part "A DREAMKU PRIMER" -- Important Up-date to A DREAMKU PRIMER....".

* * * *

‘til next time, keep dreaming,






If you wish to copy or use any of my writing or poems, please email me for permission (under “View my complete profile”). Roswila's connections & other blogs: Charter Member of the United Haiku and Tanka Society (UHTS); ROSWILA’S TAROT GALLERY & JOURNAL; ROSWILA’S TAIGA TAROT; and TRYING TO HOLD A BOX OF LIGHT.

BALANCING THE LOAD (photo art) & THE FIRST OF SEVEN (free verse dream poem) by Roswila

THE FIRST OF SEVEN

the first of seven labors the dream assigns
and the only one to be recalled on waking:

organize the slew of applications
for a sadly small number of jobs,
before they slide off
the dark wood executive desk

determine which claim to be either
of the two acceptable character types
printed in bold black across the top
of each completed application form:

"Applicant must be
RADIANT TYPE
or
PSYCHIC TYPE"

and keep in mind the footnote
in tiny italics at the end
of the several pages of each form:

"Radiant: naturally radiating love
as dominant trait; Psychic: includes
empathy and intuition as primary traits"

after two piles of forms that almost visibly
trail hope finally sit neatly stacked,
the larger for the round file,
the other for deeper review,
a thought rises like a shy will-o-the-wisp:

what happened to "FORGIVING"?


[free verse dream poem on a dream of 10-28-13. Oy, I hope this dream isn't predicting six more labors to come in future dreams. Well, even so I should count myself lucky; Hercules had 12 labors to complete. But that comment is really a joke, and this dream most certainly is not. The number seven is interesting in numerology. I was floored, however, when I googled for more info to flesh out my sense of it as indicating an interiorly oriented person. The description of the number seven at the link above sounds overall much more like me than the number five -- which I am, doubled, i.e. both by name and birth date. I'm no numerologist, but maybe like other esoteric systems numerology allows for evolution as one ages. In any case, this dream seems to be an exploration of what qualities rate high on my list, both in others and for me to develop. Photo art "Balancing the Load" (7-11-09) by Roswila]

BRIEF INTRODUCTION TO DREAMKU (& PHOTOS): The dream-based poems posted on this blog -- dreamku, tanka, two-liners, monoku, free verse, etc. -- are offered in the spirit of collaboration. I have done my part. Now it’s your turn to jump in and see what comes up for you. I.e., there is no right or wrong way to relate to any of these dream offerings. Even my own understandings of them change over time. And it gives me joy when a reader sees something in any of them that I have not.

Also please note that a dream poem is not intended as an interpretation of a dream, or even a complete and accurate rendering of one. It is my attempt to get down dream imagery/action that grabs me and, as I write about it, elicits my conscious written association and response. Nor do I believe that one has to remember dreams in order for them to do their work. In my understanding, we are much more than our conscious selves.

You may also note in any further reading on dreamku (the specific forms of dreamku, tanka, two-liners and monoku) you may do here, that in the beginning I stressed "showing, not telling." However, this has been changing for some time now. I now tend to "show" (the dream narrative) and cap if off with a "tell" (some reaction and/or insight I've had to the dream as I was writing about it). This pretty much applies to free verse dream poems as well.

For more in-depth exploration of the dreamku forms specifically (and one post in which I also address my photo choices):

-- very brief comparison of dreamku and haiku: DREAMKU ARE NOT HAIKU

-- a brief post about both dreamku and my photos THE AREN'TS OF DREAMKU & ACCOMPANYING DIGITAL PHOTOS.

-- detailed three-part post about dreamku: "A DREAMKU PRIMER: Writing Haiku-Like Poems About Your Night Dreams": PART ONE: Introduction & Writing Dreamku as Dream Work; PART TWO: Elements of the Haiku Form Used in Dreamku; and PART THREE: How to Write Dreamku (the second and third parts have some overlap).

-- a short up-dating post about the three-part "A DREAMKU PRIMER" -- Important Up-date to A DREAMKU PRIMER....".

* * * *

‘til next time, keep dreaming,






If you wish to copy or use any of my writing or poems, please email me for permission (under “View my complete profile”). Roswila's connections & other blogs: Charter Member of the United Haiku and Tanka Society (UHTS); ROSWILA’S TAROT GALLERY & JOURNAL; ROSWILA’S TAIGA TAROT; and TRYING TO HOLD A BOX OF LIGHT.

RIDING THE TIGER (photo art) & LOVE SONG (free verse dream poem) by Roswila

LOVE SONG

out for a walk, my friend and I
stumble across a crowd of young men
singing in perfect unison,
punctuating high notes
with huge red felt claws
waved above their heads

I turn to my fellow traveler astonished:
"Have I been living under a rock?
I've never heard this song before!"

we nod in agreement that most songs
gone viral hit the evening news
but not this odd love song
with its surprisingly lovely melody
and most tuneful phrase of all
sung softly and slowly
on the ultimate line:

"Durga give me nothing at all
if not all"

[free verse poem based on a dream of 10-27-13. Durga is a Hindu Goddess. Here's an image of Her:

Durga is often depicted accompanied by or sitting/riding on a tiger. I was initially drawn to Her decades back when I became aware that the tiger (or more specifically, the Siberian tiger) could be considered one of my "power animals." She also visually echoes the common image on The Strength card of the Tarot:

I make no claims to originality in that last line of the poem (straight from the dream). It's clearly my dreaming brain's re-working of the famous song line/title "All or nothing at all..." I might claim the melody, though, if I could recall it. I did actually hear it in the dream. Though I can't be sure it was original either, since I have only a gut feeling on waking to say that it was. And also that I have composed little melodies in my dreams before. Photo art "Riding the Tiger" (9-12-13) by Roswila

BRIEF INTRODUCTION TO DREAMKU (& PHOTOS): The dream-based poems posted on this blog -- dreamku, tanka, two-liners, monoku, free verse, etc. -- are offered in the spirit of collaboration. I have done my part. Now it’s your turn to jump in and see what comes up for you. I.e., there is no right or wrong way to relate to any of these dream offerings. Even my own understandings of them change over time. And it gives me joy when a reader sees something in any of them that I have not.

Also please note that a dream poem is not intended as an interpretation of a dream, or even a complete and accurate rendering of one. It is my attempt to get down dream imagery/action that grabs me and, as I write about it, elicits my conscious written association and response. Nor do I believe that one has to remember dreams in order for them to do their work. In my understanding, we are much more than our conscious selves.

You may also note in any further reading on dreamku (the specific forms of dreamku, tanka, two-liners and monoku) you may do here, that in the beginning I stressed "showing, not telling." However, this has been changing for some time now. I now tend to "show" (the dream narrative) and cap if off with a "tell" (some reaction and/or insight I've had to the dream as I was writing about it). This pretty much applies to free verse dream poems as well.

For more in-depth exploration of the dreamku forms specifically (and one post in which I also address my photo choices):

-- very brief comparison of dreamku and haiku: DREAMKU ARE NOT HAIKU

-- a brief post about both dreamku and my photos THE AREN'TS OF DREAMKU & ACCOMPANYING DIGITAL PHOTOS.

-- detailed three-part post about dreamku: "A DREAMKU PRIMER: Writing Haiku-Like Poems About Your Night Dreams": PART ONE: Introduction & Writing Dreamku as Dream Work; PART TWO: Elements of the Haiku Form Used in Dreamku; and PART THREE: How to Write Dreamku (the second and third parts have some overlap).

-- a short up-dating post about the three-part "A DREAMKU PRIMER" -- Important Up-date to A DREAMKU PRIMER....".

* * * *

‘til next time, keep dreaming,






If you wish to copy or use any of my writing or poems, please email me for permission (under “View my complete profile”). Roswila's connections & other blogs: Charter Member of the United Haiku and Tanka Society (UHTS); ROSWILA’S TAROT GALLERY & JOURNAL; ROSWILA’S TAIGA TAROT; and TRYING TO HOLD A BOX OF LIGHT.