Table manners haibun

Table manners

I was probably the clumsiest among others in my family at holding the spoon and fork. Unlike Mom, Dad, my sisters and brothers, I held the cutlery like holding a knife, instead of the way I took a grip on a pen. We didn't use a knife to savour a dish.

"Use your bare hands," my Mom said almost each and every evening when we had dinner with the whole family. "Wash them first before you start," my Mom added and moved a ceramic bowl of water towards me for hand washing.

family dinner
chinese dancer dances
in the bowl


Adab di meja makan

Dibanding anak-anak lainnya dalam keluarga kami, mungkin aku yang paling canggung menggunakan sendok dan garpu. Selalu saja aku memegang sepasang alat itu dengan cara yang aneh. Aku yang memegang sendok dan garpu seperti aku memegang pisau, bukan pena.

“Gunakan saja kedua tanganmu, tapi jangan lupa cuci dulu,” kata ibu.

makan malam
penari china menari
di kobokan

*Thanks to Alan Summers for his grammatical suggestion..

Beggar's bowl haiku

busy roadside
filling a beggar's bowl
day moon

jalanan sibuk
mangkuk pengemis penuh
bulan kesiangan

Bowl of stars haiku

dawn--
he walks home with
a bowl of stars


Pakembinangun, March 1, 2010