Paper boat and drizzle tanka

1/
tell me, owl
about nothingness
under this roof
a sheer monotony
of midnight drizzle

2/
love
is sacred
lightly
he sends a paper boat
down the river

Ordinary love haiku and tanka

1/
crescent moon--
the midnight's chill
down to the root

2/
you gave me
no ordinary love
by the campfire
too much warmth
to freeze in time

Loveboat haiku and tanka

1/
he decided to paddle
his loveboat to distant shore
and his vow
was about returning to grow
trees for nesting birds

2/
cornerview
birdbath
birdless

3/
gecko's voice--
secretly counting
her fingers

4/
wingbeat of bats
and so falls the night
dressed in black

5/
love, like life
will find a way
don't ask
why i cover my face
with layers of rain

Strange love song tanka

sitting alone
how strange it sounds now
our love song
in this moment  last year
i didn't want to get drunk

Kitchen tanka

1/
washing out
the grayness of you
i hold dear
down in the sink
this turmeric yellow

2/
the main ingredient
of all good dishes
is love
she recalls once in a while
her daughter's face

Midday drizzle haiku and tanka

1/
whirlwind
cut hay takes
another turn

2/
a silent flight of
yesterday grasses in
midday drizzle

3/
there's always an end
of seasons, love and life
the trees, you and I
calling for the rain to revive
the spirit of dead leaves

The birds and the tree tanka

1/
too much argument
to win about loyalty
and love? what love?
ah, look! the pine we planted
welcoming the birds to nest

2/
how long the drought
will it be in our marriage?
before the first rain
we know the baby birds
flying off the bare tree

A burst of her laughter haiku

outside the window
a burst of her laughter
like love like light

A fence around tanka

a fence around
our house to keep it out
anything but us
your dream of wandering
my poem, my lost love

For better or worse haiga

Seeking true love; two tanka

1/

seeking

true love

peel by peel

of her

onion

2/

make love to me...

she embraces me in

warmest kiss

i run out of breath

run out of my self

Moon river tanka

1/
now i'm down
by the river of light
o sickle moon
can you see petrified eyes
captured in the riverbed?

aku bersimpuh
di tepi sungai kemilau
o bulan sabit
kau lihatkah mata yang ketakutan
membayang di dasar sungai?

2/
under the streetlight
i stand, sigh and stare
the moon up
she says again and again
how she loves being alone

di bawah lampu jalan
aku tegak, mendesah dan terpaku
pada bulan terang
selalu saja ia bercerita
tentang cintanya pada kesendirian

Sing me love song haiku

sing me love song
once she whispered in my ear
hummingbird

A rosebud and singing cicadas tanka

1/
a rosebud in my garden
too lovely to overlook
behind this window
i welcome the morning light
as if the blooming last forever

2/
perpetual echo
of your voice in my ear
you against me
over the reason to love
cicadas singing in the trees

Plum blossoms haiga

My second haiga on my own painting; brush pen on tissue paper. Painted mindlessly during a workshop

Wedding gown haiga

Wild mushroom tanka and haiku

1/
wild mushrooms
in our deserted garden
grow in silence
we know how this coldness
lingers like cataract*

2/
the rage
i refuse to let loose
monsoon

3/
morning mist
floating above the lake
unfinished poetry
hoping you find it carved
on my headstone

4/
are you too, moon
stargazing?

5/
peeking
thru vertical blinds
morning sunbeam
is it love concealed
behind your eyelids?

*Previously published somewhere in this blog

Old poetry book haiku

old poetry book
a haiku on the title page
about my first love

buku puisi tua
haiku di halaman judul
tentang cinta pertamaku

Humble love tanka

should I apologize
for letting it go thru
my weary head
a humble love
that reaches you?

mestikah aku minta maaf
karena membiarkannya lolos
lewat benakku yang letih
cinta sederhana
yang menggapaimu?

The lake tanka

the rain
penetrates my soul
drop by drop
your love fills the lake
within me

hujan
menyusup ke jiwaku
tik tik tik
di sini cintamu memenuhi
telaga