Undertow Tanka Review
UNDERTOW TANKA REVIEW
ISSUE # 1
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The Talisman of Grief
(A
tanka sequence)
‘Do you see white hairs?’
Mother asked and I laughed
but now
I too ask my ten-year old
and she rolls her eyes
her fourteenth day rite -
a blue butterfly alights
on the prayer wheel
has mother already
found a new rebirth?
she calls
through drifts of mists
in the pine grove
the fear of not finding her
shatters the carapace of dream
that coaxing smile
as she sculptured mango shapes
for my fevered mouth
I want to remember this
not her cancer-hollowed face
each spring
her favourite rhododendrons
fill the valley
with their scent and hue
I see her in every bloom
Sonam Chhoki
Bhutan
Earnest
(A tanka sequence)
forgetting faces
yet some of them stick…
those kids
who hung nicknames
around my neck
taunts
of Ken the
Hammer
drive me deeper
into the hole
of myself
a bully
fishing for weakness
hooks
my shyness with
Kenny the Shark
a curve ball
from the kid who calls
me
Earnest…
I drive it deep
to center field
Ken Slaughter
USA
betrayal
(A tanka sequence)
all heroes
are fated to rescue
and betrayal
both darkling knight
and sabbat lord
-b-
I feel his breath
as he rides
past my door
the church bells
ring the sloe hour
-j-
sweeping
the floor behind me
I leave
footprints in the dew
where I mount
-b-
at daybreak
his shadow fades
as always
I wait for the night
and the dark man
-j-
the madman
keeps the tales
to himself
his large black bag
hidden in the forest
-b-
wild beasts
have torn the bag
with tooth and claw
the chalice lies sullied
the cloth rotting
-j-
hunger
of necessity rends
and tears
the long-limbed mandrake
howls at separation
-b-
are fated to rescue
and betrayal
both darkling knight
and sabbat lord
-b-
I feel his breath
as he rides
past my door
the church bells
ring the sloe hour
-j-
sweeping
the floor behind me
I leave
footprints in the dew
where I mount
-b-
at daybreak
his shadow fades
as always
I wait for the night
and the dark man
-j-
the madman
keeps the tales
to himself
his large black bag
hidden in the forest
-b-
wild beasts
have torn the bag
with tooth and claw
the chalice lies sullied
the cloth rotting
-j-
hunger
of necessity rends
and tears
the long-limbed mandrake
howls at separation
-b-
Brian Zimmer & Joy McCall
USA & UK
another
gaze
from
a handsome stranger...
I
seal my lips
on
a heart pendant
with
my husband’s ashes
Christine L. Villa, USA
the
way he tucks
my
hair behind my ear…
for
the first time
I
feel the sincerity
of
a man’s apology
Christine L. Villa, USA
belly
ache
from
laughing
at
my own jokes…
I
realize I’ve carved
a
deeper sorrow
Christine L. Villa, USA
where
do I go
without
you now…
the
heavy silence
after
I turn off
the
oxygen machine
Christine L. Villa, USA
to
love somebody
even
after death…
I
keep in a box
a
photo of a woman
he
once loved
Christine L. Villa, USA
the
sound
of
him sleeping
more
hours in a day
any
bird song
is
a sad lullaby
Christine L. Villa, USA
a
dewdrop dangling
from
the tip of a petal…
I
try hard
not
to show him
my
tears
Christine L. Villa, USA
a
whiff of hyacinth
by
the grocery entrance . . .
this
cold winter night
I
hope from aisle to aisle
thinking
of spring
Christine L. Villa, USA
all
the pills
he
couldn’t take anymore…
alone
I count
the
tulips waiting
to
be photographed
Christine L. Villa, USA
a
baby
enclosed
by her
mother's
arms...
when
does a shell
let
go of her pearl
Christine L. Villa, USA
grandma’s wearing her
gaudy holiday sweater
again this year
I bite my tongue
and tell her it’s lovely
maybe I should
bury your ashes
in the backyard
your blue pinwheel
still spinning
watching Gator Boys
with my daughter
on the couch
her feet
wrestle with mine
with my daughter
on the couch
her feet
wrestle with mine
Susan Burch, USA
grandma’s wearing her
gaudy holiday sweater
again this year
I bite my tongue
and tell her it’s lovely
Susan Burch, USA
hiding behind
her shaky smile
the diagnosis
of Parkinson’s, she hasn’t
been able to swallow
her shaky smile
the diagnosis
of Parkinson’s, she hasn’t
been able to swallow
Susan Burch, USA
finding out
her son’s a pedophile
my mother
wonders where
she went wrong
her son’s a pedophile
my mother
wonders where
she went wrong
Susan Burch, USA
hearing the cheers
from Wrigley Stadium
the boy imagines
he’s there, eating a hot dog,
instead of in chemo
from Wrigley Stadium
the boy imagines
he’s there, eating a hot dog,
instead of in chemo
Susan Burch, USA
eyeing
his old baseball bat
he sighs
after all these years
still no kids
his old baseball bat
he sighs
after all these years
still no kids
Susan Bunch, USA
maybe I should
bury your ashes
in the backyard
your blue pinwheel
still spinning
Susan Burch, USA
f i s s u r e s
and (whose) fault lines
cracking open
we try to mend the damage
of our quaking lives
Debbie Strange
Canada
and (whose) fault lines
cracking open
we try to mend the damage
of our quaking lives
Debbie Strange
Canada
African sun
honed on a rasp of sky
leaking ichor
our hands are stained
with the blood of child-soldiers
Debbie Strange
Canada
she held
her daughter's lips
to a mirror
no baby's breath
bloomed in the garden
Debbie Strange
Canada
jellyfish
on the beach
at low tide
you still make me
weak in the knees
Debbie Strange
Canada
Canada
our years roll by
like runaway trains
gathering speed
the closer we come
to the end of the line
Debbie Strange
Canada
children
of war zones
silenced
with no legs to walk
along the path to peace
Debbie Strange
Canada
sun rays
palpate mossy loam
on the forest floor
a nursery log suckles fungi
oh, to wean myself from you
Debbie Strange
Canada
this alchemy
of ripened clementines
and woodsmoke
the fragrance of my past
both curse and benediction
Debbie Strange
Canada
silences
or tirades cursed
every meal
we lost weight eating
degradation for dessert
Debbie Strange
Canada
the widow sinks
into depression's palette
her life's pigment
once the richest saffron
now Vincent's shade of blue
Debbie Strange
Canada
Canada
as tea leaves in water
my heart sways and submerges
under the moonlight
my heart sways and submerges
under the moonlight
is it too much to ask you
to stay two moments longer?
Aruna Rao, India
with monsoon winds
two moons have passed already
in wilting breath
I seek the length of your sleeve
and the eclipse to sing again
Aruna Rao, India
the stench of sweetness
still lingers in the grass
when I walk back
the mountain carries the moon
from one side to the other
Aruna Rao, India
in these heavy clouds
I search for the shade of grey
with bated breath
I wake behind shrouded doors
to the sound of your footsteps
Aruna Rao, India
as quicksand does,
I fall into the mouth of your heart
while it ponders
my ribs tinge in flavours
deep and bold, swirling
Aruna Rao, India
as tea in winter
I drink your breath
in evening whistles
how I wish the snow stays
and your blanket upon me
Aruna Rao, India
over this blank scroll
my brush hovers
while I search my heart
love's hummingbirds
flit further away
Aruna Rao, India
in the garden
a calendula blooms
unnoticed
just another day
that slips by
Shloka Shankar, India
summer skies...
wing by wing a bluebird
disappears
the house grows eerier
with just me and my shadow
Shloka Shankar, India
the faint
voices in my head
grow louder...
a caressing moonbeam
rests on my cheek
Shloka Shankar, India
under the elm
I count broken promises
by rote...
learning to unlearn
each one of them
a calendula blooms
unnoticed
just another day
that slips by
Shloka Shankar, India
summer skies...
wing by wing a bluebird
disappears
the house grows eerier
with just me and my shadow
Shloka Shankar, India
the faint
voices in my head
grow louder...
a caressing moonbeam
rests on my cheek
Shloka Shankar, India
under the elm
I count broken promises
by rote...
learning to unlearn
each one of them
|
Caroline Skanne
UK
draped in dreams
of stars and moons
we wander together
entwined by night
two souls surviving
Caroline Skanne
UK
full moon
in scorpio
a passion
that lasts
all night
Caroline Skanne
UK
the afterglow
of our love
lingers softly
moonbeams
on bare skin
Caroline Skanne
UK
love's light touch
two butterflies
circling the sun --
together we know
anything is possible
Caroline Skanne
UK
taken under
a wrens' wing
weightless, i travel
on all that is
effervescent
Caroline Skanne
UK
half moon
you show me
two sides
to the same
old truth
Caroline Skanne
UK
the book of
my life
keeps getting
bigger
it's a good
thing
I choose to
write it
on trimmings
of the Lokta bush
Kath Abela Wilson
USA
one stem
a hundred blooms
this century
plant
each life
shapes
its own
spring
Kath Abela Wilson
USA
from the air
I see it
the long ago
more watery
more green
I forgot that
this is home
Kath Abela Wilson
USA
I keep it
under my
flowery hat
the magic
garden
that grows
there
in my head
Kath Abela Wilson
USA
sometimes
I can't tell
the difference
between us
do we swim or
fly
and what do
we fish for
Kath Abela Wilson
USA
sometimes
impossible
becomes
possible
magnolia
I watch you
turn
into a bird
Kath Abela Wilson
USA
as if
twilight
was an easy
door
you left
for the place
where lights
were already
off
Kath Abela Wilson
USA
as if the sea
were were
your village
you lead me
on
crumbling
steps to shore
to slice
sashimi
Kath Abela Wilson
USA
even by this
busy street
I notice the
place
where the
deer slept
wishing it
were you
all night the
bent lilies
Kath Abela Wilson
USA
broken pieces
mortared with
tears
scenes
on a Moroccan
plate
I set into my
hearth
Kath Abela Wilson
USA
with duress
first wife holds inside
her outrage
he is looking
at a young filly
Joann Grisetti
Winter Springs FL USA
Winter Springs FL USA
frost fingers
a watercolor palette
in October
wings wash the sky
by the thousands
Joann Grisetti
Winter Springs FL USA
loud words
trying so very hard
to hurt you
I would do anything
to remember our your smile
Joann Grisetti
Winter Springs FL USA
first man
to last more than three dates
quite special
the feeling that comes
while dancing
Joann Grisetti
Winter Springs FL USA
Winter Springs FL USA
autumn…
sailor drifts back
in time
on a summer
undertow
sailor drifts back
in time
on a summer
undertow
Pat Geyer, USA
alone,
watching the waves
crash...
i remember
the future
watching the waves
crash...
i remember
the future
Pat Geyer, USA
ocean waves
crashing over sand castles
children laugh...
i try to remember that
feeling of scattered laughter
crashing over sand castles
children laugh...
i try to remember that
feeling of scattered laughter
Pat Geyer, USA
bluest of blue
this undersea ridge...
waiting,
we cross a bridge
to our ocean of dreams
this undersea ridge...
waiting,
we cross a bridge
to our ocean of dreams
Pat Geyer, USA
no fresh ground
sand covered debris
waits to float away...
ghosts of sad memories
rush back to the sea
sand covered debris
waits to float away...
ghosts of sad memories
rush back to the sea
Pat Geyer, USA
undertow
running back to the sea
a seashell
looking back at your steps
cannot remember your face
Vessislava Liubomirova
Savova
Sofia,
Bulgaria
someone sings
easy come easy go
an echo
the waves are going back
back to the deep ocean
Vessislava Liubomirova
Savova
Sofia,
Bulgaria
unknown creature
at the bottom of the ocean
a secret
a robber has stolen
a picture of yours
Vessislava Liubomirova
Savova
Sofia,
Bulgaria
waiting for
the supermoon
above us
a pair of lovebirds
pecking
Angelo B. Ancheta
Philippines
the supermoon
above us
a pair of lovebirds
pecking
Angelo B. Ancheta
Philippines
still reeling
from the surge
only we know
the slamming waves
goes a refrain
Angelo B. Ancheta
Philippines
Arunansu
Bandyopadhyay
India
ripping apart
your last letter
in a fit of rage--
white butterflies
flutter away
Arunansu
Bandyopadhyay
India
applying a
balm
over burning
ulcers
i can only
smile
to your
morbid eyes
ill with love
Arunansu Bandyopadhyay
India
sun sets behind
bullet-ridden clouds
at Golgotha
a violin plays out
the agony of mankind
Arunansu Bandyopadhyay
India
watching the trail
of a Grad missile...
was this the route
followed by the Star
of Bethlehem?
Arunansu Bandyopadhyay
India
a late summer sunset
sumptuous and surreal
wears clouds
of salmon pink and
charcoal gray …
a kiss of lightning ends the day
Judi Brannan Armbruster
USA
coveys of quail scuttle
under
dead blackberry bushes
challenge Jays and Juncos
for
seeds shaken from the feeder…
count sixty
Judi Brannan Armbruster
USA
there is on earth
this mangled mountain
where progress looms
and nature tumbles
to her knees
Judi Brannan Armbruster
USA
trying to figure out
the meaning
of undertowtanka,
find it's too deep
for me
Sanford Goldstein
Japan
I ponder
and seem
to understand,
after all, good tanka
have more than a surface meaning
Sanford Goldstein
Japan
at eighty-eight
I find the surface
is old, bent,
cane-driven,
and still I guard an undercurrent of wisdom
Sanford Goldstein
Japan
my wife
died in l972,
and she mentioned once
this surface life
which she wanted no part of
Sanford Goldstein
Japan
no pennies
from heaven
in the violence of our world,
our hate has a depth
beyond all understanding
Sanford Goldstein
Japan
once
we sang
over the rainbow,
how beautiful we felt
our world would be
Sanford Goldstein
Japan
walking
on sand
and treading
down, down,
to what?
Sanford Goldstein
Japan
perhaps
the younger she was
the prettier,
but so much behind
her splendid scarf and hat
Sanford Goldstein
Japan
long ago
I felt the world
a tour-de-force,
now I want to hide
below and beyond
Sanford Goldstein
Japan
I search
my moon all the way
horizon of hope
offers solace in the midnight
rekindling vastness of the sky
Pravat Kumar Padhy,
India
I painted
throughout night
my memories
of grief and anguish
remain as patches of white
Pravat Kumar Padhy,
India
autumn morning
all my wishes fall apart
some drains
into the meandering river
rest blown before I could gather
Pravat Kumar Padhy,
India
the spider
rides up and down
on the mirror
I readjust my face
picking up the shinny hair
Pravat Kumar Padhy,
India
thin moon
in the hot summer
the nest swings
catching darkness
everywhere
Pravat Kumar Padhy,
India
the train
whistles to start
I carry her
memories till I reach
the stretched distance
Pravat Kumar Padhy,
India
harsh sunlight
on the fourth anniversary
of his death
sunrise on the lough
almost painful to watch
Marion Clarke
Warrenpoint, Northern Ireland
winter garden
the steady creak
of a rusty swing chair
I try to remember my father's voice
calling us for Sunday mass
Marion Clarke
Warrenpoint, Northern Ireland
at low tide
the sound of seagulls
and moaning wind
in the rock pool I find
nothing but my reflection
Marion Clarke
Warrenpoint, Northern Ireland
an old farmer
returns a field mouse
to the scarecrow's pocket
I long for the ridged texture
of Dad's old corduroy coat
Marion Clarke
Warrenpoint, Northern Ireland
I walk between worlds
a shadow born of light
and darkness...
who hears the cry of legends
under this waking moon
Rebecca
Drouilhet
Picayune,
Mississippi, USA
swimming
in an ocean of stars...
all the years
we spent racing through the night
never looking up until now
Rebecca
Drouilhet
Picayune,
Mississippi, USA
fireworks
and the star-spangled banner
under a half-moon sky
what afterglow will remain
inside my American dream
Rebecca
Drouilhet
Picayune, Mississippi, USA
sliver
moon
waterbugs
creep into
shadows
the
dog's tags jangle
on
the lonely street
Carole
Johnston
Lexington,
Kentucky, USA
the
moon
is
a ghost egg
floating
like
a spotted snake
made
of orange jello
Carole
Johnston
Lexington,
Kentucky, USA
in
my dream
writing
haiku with
Kerouac
I
write of his eyes
he
writes of dead flies
Carole
Johnston
Lexington,
Kentucky, USA
gave
away
my
first haiku book
broken
like
a blue bead muse
I
want it back
Carole
Johnston
Lexington,
Kentucky, USA
will
I ever
understand
pine trees
how
they drop
and
keep their needles
living
on poet time
Carole
Johnston
Lexington,
Kentucky, USA
wish
I could
believe
in her ghosts
how
she steals -
the
blood of family stories
bad
enough without her lies
Carole
Johnston
Lexington,
Kentucky, USA
we
played in the attic
of
the gingerbread castle
hiding
in closets
never
knowing how
the
crooked man lurked
Carole
Johnston
Lexington,
Kentucky, USA
late summer
walking the beach
light blinds us
we spend the day
watching our feet
walking the beach
light blinds us
we spend the day
watching our feet
Liz
Moura, USA
so few petals
remain on the stems
each morning
I find them piling up
inside my old shoes
remain on the stems
each morning
I find them piling up
inside my old shoes
Liz
Moura, USA
supermoon
we hear the neighbors
outside
as we nestle
in threadbare sheets
we hear the neighbors
outside
as we nestle
in threadbare sheets
Liz
Moura, USA
another polar vortex
my first winter
with a puppy –
Mother Nature’s
sense of humour
Leslie Bamford
Waterloo, Ontario, Canada
morning walk
two sparrows spooning
in a magnolia
bridal suite of pink -
who needs Vegas?
Leslie Bamford
Waterloo, Ontario, Canada
quarreling under
the patio umbrella
this afternoon -
baby grackles scold
us from their nest
Leslie Bamford
Waterloo, Ontario, Canada
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