Selected Tanka: Shades of Blue Tanka

with my dog-eared
bilingual dictionary
I ponder
the difference between
all these shades of blue

Tanka Journal, 42, 2013

Selected Tanka: Childhood Memories Tanka

once again
childhood memories
share my bed...
counting the stars, I measure
the weight of this night

Tanka Journal, 42, 2013

Selected Tanka: Reality Prison Tanka

with bed sheets
made of midsummer dreams
I scale down the wall
of reality prison . . .
one poem after another

The Tanka Journal, 40, 2012

Selected Tanka: Flaming Heart Tanka

snow falling
all the way home
yet the tongue
of my flaming heart for her
licks my face for hours

The Tanka Journal, 40, 2012

Suicide Note Tanka

under dim light
his ink-stained suicide note:
the cliché is beautiful
because it comes to my eyes
in its last extremity

Tanka Journal, 44, April 2014

A Tanka about My Underground Notes

the poet found
hanging from his belt
near the window
My Underground Notes scattered
on this Good Friday night

Tanka Journal, 44, April 2014

Hourglass of Life Tanka

I’ve scribbled
around these lines on “poet’s dream”
for a week
if only I could turn
the hourglass of my life

Tanka Journal, 44, April 2014

Clichéd Words Tanka

these clichéd words
curling on themselves
stare up at me
in their hollow eyes
the longing for death

Tanka Journal, 44, April 2014

Spring Rain Tanka

drowning
in my own vomit
of cliched words . . .
awake to the pitter patter
of spring rain

Tanka Journal, 44, April 2014

Winter Sunlight Tanka

winter sunlight
once filled the window
behind her bed . . .
for our New Year dinner
one less set of chopsticks

Tanka Journal, 43, 2013

Silent Night Tanka

Silent Night
drifts over from the neighbors
alone in the attic
I write, Dear Mom, 
I'm doing fine...

Tanka Journal, 43, 2013

Squirrel Tanka

a squirrel
stands on its two feet
talking
to the silent sky...
maple leaves keep falling

Tanka Journal, 43, 2013

Blooming Fruit Tree Tanka

blooming fruit tree
where we carved our initials ...
alone at dawn
I stand in its shadow
dreaming our midsummer dream

Tanka Journal, 43, 2013

Rage Tanka

a butterfly
lies dead on the windowsill
this spring morning
wrapped in rage, I scribble
one poem after another

Tanka Journal, 43, 2013

Temple Bell Tanka

the temple bell
echoes in the distance
a lump in my throat
a few lines
scrawled and blotted

Tanka Journal, 42, 2013

Birdsong Tanka

bird songs
drift through the window
as day breaks
my butterfly dream
against the attic wall

Tanka Journal, 42, 2013

Loneliness Tanka

loneliness
runs through my body
like the thread
through Mother's needle --
my poems stitched with its color

Tanka Journal, 42, 2013

Bilingual Dictionary Tanka

with my dog-eared
bilingual dictionary
I ponder
the difference between
all these shades of blue

Tanka Journal, 42, 2013

A Tanka about Childhood Memories

once again
childhood memories
share my bed...
counting the stars, I measure
the weight of this night 

Tanka Journal, 42, 2013

Emoticon Tanka

your love poem is filled
with aluminum powder:
in the email
her emoticon winks at me
with its tongue stuck out

The Tanka Journal, 41, 2012