Monday, November 28, 2016

Haibun - Indian Summer

Carol Law Conklin - "Adirondack Autumn Sunset"

Wispy-white mare's tails swish sky's blue this noon as heated fingers reach through poplar stripped branches and tickle arms and legs, bare.  It's days like today, after a frost or two, that pony and I would become sure-footed mustang and Indian, riding bareback through stubbled cornfield and quarry, descending into time, scouting for arrowheads.  It's days like today that cradle me, morning mist no longer blankets uplifted crowns of gold but hovers over the expanse of denuded fields where I imagine tepees once stood and Cherokee raced dug-out canoes along the French Broad and Swannanoa.  It's days like today, as goldfinches pick sunflowers dry, sunlit logs buoy river otters and turtles, and evening's pink veil deepens to purples and reds that I reminisce and as swiftly as the seasons change, anticipate renewal.


A hard frost descends
welcomes hazy days, clear nights
and peace-filled slumber

by Margaret Bednar, November 28, 2016

You are invited to listen to me read my poem:  https://soundcloud.com/margaretbednar/haibun-indian-summer

Pony & I became sure-footed mustang and Indian...

This challenge is linked (late) with "Imaginary Garden with Real Toads - Artistic Interpretations with Margaret - Carol Law Conklin Batik Artist."  Carol Law Conklin is a Batik Artist with a wide variety of creations she highlights and sells on her Website, Amity Farm Batik, and Etsy Store.  She has a Facebook page and I also enjoyed watching her video batik "how to" tutorials.

Not supposed to name a Haibun, but I think of this one as "Indian Summer"   This is also linked with "dVerse Poets Pub: Haibun Monday - Free for All"

and... "Imaginary Garden with Real Toad's - The Tuesday Platform".

Note:  mares tails:  Cirrus uncinus is a type of cloud derived from Latin meaning "curly hooks". Also known as mares' tails, these clouds are generally sparse in the sky and very thin.


An interesting Article about the rivers and creeks that wind their way through Asheville, NC:



18 comments:

tonispencer said...

I like this haibun a lot. My ears pricked up at Swannanoa as I used to attend camp and later worked at a camp in the Asheville area and I lived in Dillsboro for a few years. I like the descriotion of the sky and how you linked it to you and the Pony.

Kim M. Russell said...

I enjoyed your haibun so much, Margaret. I have never experienced any of this first hand, although I often dreamed of 'Wispy-white mare's tails' and becoming 'sure-footed mustang and Indian, riding bareback through stubbled cornfield and quarry'. I enjoyed your vivid description of nature and the imagined tepees and canoes. The haiku crowns the whole thing beautifully.

Debi Swim said...

Oh, I wish I could ride like you do. What an exhilarating experience. Loved reading your haibun

Frank Hubeny said...

Nice ride into the past on that pony remembering the Cherokee.

Paul John Dear said...

A lovely passage of prose that took me into a different set of my own memories...something quite tactile about your descriptions.

Sanaa Rizvi said...

I agree, this is beautifully haunting!!❤️

ZQ said...

Thank you. A wonderful piece and haiku.
ZQ

Anonymous said...

You've written a scene I can feel very well! And I've always wanted a pony, or one I could ride nearby. :)

brudberg said...

I really like how you imagine adventures on your riding tour... I think that there are many occasions when we can make normality and adventure... gorgeous.

Anonymous said...

Beautiful imagery in your prose. The haiku is a wonderful description of the late fall weather we've been experiencing.

Marian said...

Really beautiful, Margaret.

Kerry O'Connor said...

This is a wonderfully multi-layered post, Margaret. The art, the prose, the haiku and your notes.. such an fulfilling experience.

kaykuala said...

that I reminisce and as swiftly as
the seasons change, anticipate renewal

Yes, and as swiftly the seasons change anew! A Beautiful throwback to those carefree days of riding in the openness of nature together with the 'mustang' Great write, Marge!

Hank

Anonymous said...

Love the atmosphere..nature and emotion...in your piece.

Sherry Blue Sky said...

This is so beautiful. I could picture it all, and feel the connection of pony and girl. Sigh. Lovely.

Rosemary Nissen-Wade said...

Richly evoked!

Mish said...

I was carried away with your words...such a beautiful cadence in your prose. The repetition of " It's days like today" is so effective.

Katie Mia Frederick said...

Blanket of
warmth
end
of
new
Humid
November
niGht of wet
air
day
of
storm now..
who kNows..
perhaps cool
air too.. soon
as Indian Summer
finAlly rainS iN FL..
Panhandle way..;)