For most of my adult life (including college days and a dozen years
practicing law), Washington, D.C., was my home. I often miss my
many good friends in the DC Area. In Springtime, however, two
events — the blooming of the cherry blossoms and of the azaleas —
make me yearn to be physically back there, amidst priceless and
wordless beauty (update 9 PM: like Mira and Elana).
so far away –
cherry blossoms and the smile
that humbles them
Washingtonians are celebrating their National Cherry Blossom Fesitval
from March 25 through April 9. According to the National Park Service,
today (March 30th) is the expected Peak Bloom day — “the day in which
70 percent of the blossoms of the Yoshino Cherry (Prunus x yedoensis)
trees are open.” You can read the history of Washington’s cherry trees,
originally a gift in 1912 from the people of Japan, here.
The Washington Post has a video, “A Day
Among the Cherry Blossoms”, March 26, 2006, for
those who would like to dally. Read about the
Festical here.
among cherry blossoms
a long stay
in this world
Issa,
translated by David G. Lanoue
anne marie williams
The blooming period of cherry blossoms can last as long as
14 days. The contrast of the beauty and the impermanence of
the blossoms have long made them the perfect subject for haiku
(and for zen philosophers).
Last month, we featured poems from the Vancouver Cherry Blossom
Festival’s Haiku Invitational Contest. Here are a pair of Vancouver
winners from two of f/k/a‘s Honored Guests:
“VCBFLogo”
distant thunder
a few cherry blossoms
float to earth
cherry blossoms
the tug tug tug
of baby’s hand
morning mist
a bent back sweeps
yesterday’s blossoms
Cherry blossoms are so cherished in Japan, that any poem
mentioning “blossoms” with no further designation, is regarded
as being about cherry blossoms. Our beloved kobayashi issa
wrote thousands of haiku about cherry blossoms. Go here for
several dozen.
“BlossomBrachF”
Cherry blossoms can evoke quite a few different emotions and
insights. Issa, along with his translator David G. Lanoue, shares
a few of his with us:
mountain cherry blossoms–
the pine trees
stand guard
mountain cherry blossoms–
hair decoration
for a bald man
“blossomsDC”
sunset–
a ruckus in the cherry blossoms
a ruckus in the trout stream
pulling up
his fishhook he looks…
at cherry blossoms!
hey cherry blossoms–
why the rush
to scatter so soon?
evening cherry blossoms–
the devil is moved
to tears
“BlossomBrach”
growing old–
even the cherry blossoms
a bit annoying
even while walking
through cherry blossoms…
nagging!
the roof sweeper
stands still…
evening cherry blossoms
the buck looks
at cherry blossoms…
shedding his horns
Edo’s cherry blossoms, too
shine only
for money
world of pain–
and the cherry blossoms
add to it!
the great lord
forced off his horse…
cherry blossoms
Issa,
translated by David G. Lanoue
take a little time to experience them — or the Blossom Police
might be knocking at your door.
March 30, 2006
d.c. dreams – cherry blossoms at their peak
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