New Moon

Leaf 232 – Reflections

 

Following on from Leaf 92 and Leaf 93, these are two further linked verse haiku reflecting upon the Apollo lunar landing programme and the age-old notions of both “a new moon,” and “a blue moon.” The last incorporates elements of a famous line spoken by Charlie Duke, the Capcom at NASA, to astronaut Neil Armstrong after Armstrong reported that “the Eagle has landed.”

 

 

20 July 1969:

all eyes on earth

– a new moon.

 

***

 

About to turn blue,

breathing again –

new moon.

 

 

 

These poems were originally written & posted on Bluesky in response to a #dailyhaikuprompt: 'new moon.'

Photograph credits: NASA

Scribing the Sky

Leaf 231 – Reflections

 

This is a poem recording a sight seen on a trip to Shimoda, on the Izu peninsula, in the early summer of last year.

 

 

Over the cliffs,

scribing clear sky –

kite flying rising pirouettes.

 

 

 

 

Photographs by Tim Chamberlain

Serengeti Picnic

Leaf 230 – Senryu (or witty, tom-foolery)

 

This is another poem – possibly – inspired by watching the nature documentaries of Sir David Attenborough (see also, Leaf 124). However, I like the ambiguity in this one. It poses the question: exactly who is having a picnic in this scene?

 

 

Serengeti picnic –

pride of pink faces

dozing in the sunshine.

 

 

 

 

This poem was originally written and posted on Bluesky in response to a #dailyhaikuprompt: 'picnic.'

Photograph credit: Bernd Lee/Pexels

Sultry Summer

Leaf 229 – Reflections

 

Namiki Hajime - Tree Scene 96 (1999)

The large hedge in the lane behind our home here in Tokyo – which is essentially a leafy mansion block for sparrows – is often abuzz with chirping conversation (see Leaf 8). The following haiku was penned at the height of a very sultry summer:

 

 

Sparrows –

chattering about

this incessant heat.

 

 

 

 

Cri de Coeur

Leaf 228 – Reflections

 

Kilmar Tor (Geograph)

Another poem, reflecting upon sights commonly seen and closely felt in the far southwest of Cornwall.

 

 

CRI DE COEUR

 

A buzzard’s cry –

circling far across fields,

piercing a granite tor.

 

 

 

 

This poem was originally written and posted on Bluesky in response to a #haikufeels writing prompt: 'cry.'

Summer Solstice

Leaf 227 – Reflections

 

Max Alexander STFC SPL - Sunrise Solstice at Stonehenge (2008)

A haiku which I wrote to mark the Summer Solstice on 21 June 2025:

 

 

Broken stones –

centuries meld into

a single sunlit morn. 

Jon Britton - Stonehenge (1801)

-----------------------------------------------------

Plus – two, slightly less-reverential, senryu:

 

SOLSTICE

 

Summer not yet begun,

already the nights

are drawing in.

 

***

 

Falling a foot shy,

street bollards almost

aligned on the solstice.

 

 

 

 

Lukáš Lehotský - B&W Bollards

The first and last of these three poems were originally written and posted on Bluesky in response to different writing prompts, see: #vssdaily 'sky' & #whistpr 'broke.'

Cormorant

Leaf 226 – Senryu (or witty, tom-foolery)

 

Tim Chamberlain - Cormorant on Shinobazu Pond (2004)

I’ve always thought that ‘Bela Lugosi’ might be a good nickname for these birds …

 

 

Dracula silhouette –

a cormorant airing

water-soaked wings.

 

 

 

Bela Lugosi as Dracula (1931)

This poem was originally written and posted on Bluesky in response to a #dailyhaikuprompt: 'soaked.'