ECHOES OF WINTER (photo art) & FIRST SNOW (three non-dream 'ku) by Roswila

FIRST SNOW


morning the frozen lock gives way

* * *

dusty winter boots more silver in her braid

* * *

reverberating the moon in icy branches

* * *


[three non-dream monoku, all written well prior to 2000. (These have probably been posted here before in the haiku, three line form.) I've been feeling a lot of empathy with folk back east in New York City right now. And grateful I don't have to cope anymore with the cold, and worse, the ice (since moving to CA in 2008). Yet, there was beauty. I can still see the scene that inspired that last monoku. That elm tree is long gone but not the wonder of that sight. Photo art "Echoes of Winter" (3-21-10 10021v3) by Roswila]

BRIEF INTRODUCTION TO DREAMKU (& PHOTOS): The dream-based poems posted on this blog -- dreamku, tanka, two-liners, monoku, free verse, dream narratives -- 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 or narrative 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. I now tend to "show" (the dream story) 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 also pretty much applies to my free verse dream poems as well. As to what I have begun calling dream narratives, they are a different animal, probably most akin to prose poems.

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.

THE TIME BETWEEN (photo) & "behind the women..." (non-dream haiku) by Roswila

behind the women
bent to their gossip
a coral sunset


[non-dream haiku written 9-26-13. Photo "The Time Between" (12-3-10 10066e) by Roswila]

BRIEF INTRODUCTION TO DREAMKU (& PHOTOS): The dream-based poems posted on this blog -- dreamku, tanka, two-liners, monoku, free verse, dream narratives -- 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 or narrative 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. I now tend to "show" (the dream story) 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 also pretty much applies to my free verse dream poems as well. As to what I have begun calling dream narratives, they are a different animal, probably most akin to prose poems.

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.

NIGHT OF THE UNICORN (photo) & THE VIRGIN MOMENT (free verse dream inluenced poem) by Roswila

THE VIRGIN MOMENT

would that what I lay in the lap
of the virgin moment were as filled
with light as a unicorn's horn
and as full of magical potential

but I am hoisted on my own petard,
bound round with the twin twistings
of nature and nurture, and shot through
with the certitude of ancient resentments

the delicate weave of possibility
that drapes an untouched moment
cannot bear this weight
tearing each time I come to it
and lay my burden down


[free verse poem resulting partially from the dreams of 12-7-13. In case anyone reading this blog knows me/my family, I have no news about my brother. Now to the above poem: as I started to wake that first stanza came to me. I did not dream about a unicorn nor did I think of the opening stanza as being about a dream. That sleepy writing was a spontaneous mulling over of many things, not just the night's images. However, another dream that night -- see post here of 12-8-13 referencing The Strength card in The Tarot -- had a similar implied image. I.e., in both the unicorn myth and in The Strength card, a gentle woman catches/tames a beast. This dream inspired poem above, however, has a far less positive outcome than the one of 12-8-13. I'm inclined to think it's because this one is largely the product of my conscious mind, where most of my negativity seems to be produced. Whereas the dream poem of 12-8-13 is deeply rooted in my dreaming mind, coming directly out of the images of a dream. Which is not surprising as, although there's not too much I feel certain about in dream work, I do believe dreams come in the service of healing. Photo "Night of the Unicorn" (11-15-09 8200e) by Roswila]

BRIEF INTRODUCTION TO DREAMKU (& PHOTOS): The dream-based poems posted on this blog -- dreamku, tanka, two-liners, monoku, free verse, dream narratives -- 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 or narrative 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. I now tend to "show" (the dream story) 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 also pretty much applies to my free verse dream poems as well. As to what I have begun calling dream narratives, they are a different animal, probably most akin to prose poems.

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.

[old family photo] & NOW AND THEN (non-dream autobiographical vignette) by Roswila

NOW AND THEN

The evening is dreary. A car slips by spewing water across the sidewalks. Its headlights briefly splash twin asterisks of light on my rain wet window pane. How much they look like sparklers...

I can still smell the pungent odor of the last sparkler my father lit. My spirit jumps in sympathy with my towheaded brother's rabbit path around our father. "Please, please, please Daddy, one more, one more!" Phssst, fizzle and Daddy answers his plea. We all stand, momentarily content to be silent and together as the brief beauty burns down...

Long after the bright stars on the window have gone, a tender glow remains, cradled by the night.

[re-post of non-dream autobiographical vignette. NOW AND THEN came to mind since hearing of my brother's serious illness yesterday (he's in a medically induced coma). In the photo above Russ is just about the age he was in this vignette. Throughout my dreams last night I found myself singing snatches of the below Bob Dylan song to him:

"Forever Young"

May God bless and keep you always
May your wishes all come true
May you always do for others
And let others do for you
May you build a ladder to the stars
And climb on every rung
May you stay forever young
Forever young, forever young
May you stay forever young.

May you grow up to be righteous
May you grow up to be true
May you always know the truth
And see the lights surrounding you
May you always be courageous
Stand upright and be strong
May you stay forever young
Forever young, forever young
May you stay forever young.

May your hands always be busy
May your feet always be swift
May you have a strong foundation
When the winds of changes shift
May your heart always be joyful
And may your song always be sung
May you stay forever young
Forever young, forever young
May you stay forever young.]

PLEASE NOTE: There are many other sorts of daily posts on this blog. The vast majority being my poetry based on dreams with my digital photos accompanying each. Some non dream focused posts are book reviews, "regular" poems, scifaiku, writing exercises, Tarot haiku, photos, haiga, and so on. However, most of those are in much older posts. There's a listing by month going back to early 2006 in the sidebar.

* * * *

til next time, keep dreaming,






[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 blogs: ROSWILA'S TAROT GALLERY & JOURNAL; ROSWILA'S TAIGA TAROT; and TRYING TO HOLD A BOX OF LIGHT, digital photos. ****

PETROGLYPH (Photo art) & "digging through strata..." (dreamku) by Roswila

digging through strata
sanskrit letters
glimmer on the walls


[re-posting of a dreamku from 2006. Photo art "Petroglyph" (9-16-11 11285e) by Roswila]

BRIEF INTRODUCTION TO DREAMKU (& PHOTOS): The dream-based poems posted on this blog -- dreamku, tanka, two-liners, monoku, free verse, dream narratives -- 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 or narrative 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. I now tend to "show" (the dream story) 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 also pretty much applies to my free verse dream poems as well. As to what I have begun calling dream narratives, they are a different animal, probably most akin to prose poems.

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.

IRRUPTION (photo art) & TOO LOVELY A DAY (dream tanka series with two-liner) by Roswila

TOO LOVELY A DAY

she calls to her friend
to follow, then dives off the dock
oh how delightful
to be swimming in a lake,
swimming anywhere, really

oddly enough, though,
there's a bit of a tide that tugs
at her long limbs,
inching her into deep water
where she'd rather not go

she's never fully
trusted lake bottoms and what might
grow there, waiting to
grab her ankles and drag her down
into the garbage strewn depths

and what's this, swimming
lazily toward her like some
latter day Loch Ness
monster, rolling surely along
on a collision course

the tide won't permit
her a change of direction
but back peddling
stops her in place and "Nessie"
sweeps obliviously by

yet the swell of its wake
thrusts her farther out into
the wide sunlit lake
oh no, what's this, diving and
surfacing, diving and surfacing

a huge red creature,
hind quarters serrated
like a horseshoe crab's!
she's got to get back into
the clear shallow water

fear strengthens her stroke
even as resolve calms her,
she adopts the dive
and surface rolling patterns
of the creatures' swimming styles

fear can teach her more from dockside
it's way too lovely a day to go under


[several tanka capped by a two-liner on a dream of 12-14-13. Sigh, here were are, back to water again! Actually this is a rather positive dream. I believe it reflects the space I'm learning to create between myself and my more overwhelming emotions. That I don't have to drown in them to learn from them. There's more to this dream, but this is the most salient point. (BTW, "Nessie" is what the controversial Loch Ness monster is often called. ) Photo art "Irruption" (7-17-10 10004ev5) by Roswila

BRIEF INTRODUCTION TO DREAMKU (& PHOTOS): The dream-based poems posted on this blog -- dreamku, tanka, two-liners, monoku, free verse, dream narratives -- 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 or narrative 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. I now tend to "show" (the dream story) 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 also pretty much applies to my free verse dream poems as well. As to what I have begun calling dream narratives, they are a different animal, probably most akin to prose poems.

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.