Welcome to the 24 Seasons Syllabic Poetry challenge for #TankaTuesday!
This week for #TankaTuesday we’re entering the season of: The Time of Planting Grains as we follow the 24 Seasons of Japan. The dates are based off of the lunisolar calendar, often called an agricultural calendar. The traditional Chinese and Japanese lunisolar calendar divides a year into 24 solar terms.
This is the second week of SEASON. Every two weeks, we will move into another season in the 24 Japanese Seasons HERE.
This week’s prompt for Colleen Chesebro’s Tuesday Tanka Challenge Below are three kigo phrases for the Northern and Southern Hemispheres. Use one kigo phrase in each of your three poems in whatever order you’d like. If three poems are too much, write one longer version poem. Extra credit for using more than one kigo word phrase.
🌱 Northern Hemisphere:
- #1: “green leaf shade”
- #2: “rainy season”
- #3: “first firefly”
❄️ Southern Hemisphere:
#3: “winter seclusion”
#1: “warmth around the hearth”
#2: “clear and cold”
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Where I live the town council has decided to cut costs, cutting back on everything from refuge disposal to fixing potholes in the roads. They are putting in parking restrictions that make taking a car into town pointless and very expensive! This in a way is killing the town and it’s businesses. The latest idea they have had is not only inconvenient it is downright dangerous.
They have decided not to cut the grass in any of the parks, greens or playgrounds. Not to cut any of the dog walking areas and town owned meadows. Not even the green strips along side houses and roads. The newer houses are still getting their green areas cut as they pay a fee to private maintenance firm to do so. Sadly those of us who live in the older houses do not get this. Although we pay our rates and taxes! The common land which the town council are supposed to take care of is not being maintained or cut…. apparently this is “to help nature, bugs, birds and wildlife” ….well it’s all knee high now, in fact it’s up to my waist! Well it’s also very good for insects.
Even worse it’s full of ticks. So parents and pet owners are having to check their children and animals daily for ticks! It’s all over social media parents complaining about finding multiples of ticks on their children. Extra work for the doctors and vets in the area. It’s a worry because the tick often carries Lyme disease…. Rant over.
I have used Colleen’s phrases and added ticks, rain falling, long grass, hidden danger as Kigo words . I have written two Haiku and one Tanka.
Watch out in long grass
Danger lurks in green leaf shade
Ignored by council
There’s no first fireflies
Sadly they don’t visit us
But we do have ticks
The grass grows so tall
Will this rainy season end
Don’t play on the green
Parents, dog owners beware
They carry poison so check.
willowdot21 