Jan Burkins,
Steve Peterson and I have collaborated on another renga.
Our first renga (and notes about the form) are here. Here's our second renga:
as the hummingbird sips the nectar
I.
round moon not yet full
finds my cracker--full ‘til bitten
life full with roundness
sharp as a wheel of cheddar
smooth and creamy as brie
under the gnarled oak
an old couple tosses
dry crusts to the pigeons
we become what we take in
fresh foods, sour moods, vast ideas
II.
mountain peaks tower
above the endless plains
full -- sharp -- old -- vast -- inspiring
toward evening, golden sunlight
settled on her wrinkled face
inside she’s a girl
surprised by her reflection
in her dreams she runs
river carries silt downstream
building up the new island
III.
sweet alchemy --
orchard apples filled
by the light of a star
loose tooth lost with first bite
red orb of bittersweet
cold front passes through
scrubs away humidity
wren sings from the fence
once, he learned to see rainbows
in the oil on a street puddle
a skill important
for grownups who are often
too busy measuring
too concerned with to-do to
barter duty for beauty
When we chatted via conference call about the finished poem (on the afternoon before Steve's first day back), I loved what Jan said about the process, how it's like laying one stone out at a time, building a path as we walk forward.
As we talked about our inspirations for each of our stanzas, or the stories behind our words, it was amazing (again) to learn from where in our lives these words had come.
I was the one who divided the poem into sections this time. I was working (probably too left-brainedly) to find a flow of meaning throughout the whole poem. While I couldn't find it throughout the whole, I did find it in these sets.
Steve gave us our title, and I think it's quite brilliant.
This is what I'm learning from Steve and Jan as we write together -- how to string pearls.
