the moon is half drum as night unspools threads of velvet. i love to watch the blue hour of sunset and inhale the fragrance of pines. tonight, i cannot go outside as its below zero and very chilly. last friday, after my hubby and i had dinner at the vietnamese restaurant, i saw an old man with full beard of white. he is homeless from the way he carried paper bags of stuff. he also looked unkempt and struggled to walk along the sidewalk. above, the sky was an endless map, empty of stars. when I last glanced back at the old man, he has disappeared in the cold night.
fresh snow on browning leaves-
dusk comes charging, a grey horse
belching clouds of white
Posted for D'verse Poets Pub - Haibun Monday - Hosted by Kanzensakura ~ This is our last Haibun before we take our 2 week holiday break in December.
So poignant, Grace. Your prose is so poetic, the story, sad--and it repeats itself too often.
ReplyDeleteLovely haibun Grace. Your prose, indeed as Victoria says, is always so poetic and paints such vivid pictures. How sad that there are so many homeless. Yet your haibun combines sad with happy and the haiku is absolutely stellar.
ReplyDeleteYour prose paints the picture of too many. Your haiku, so beautiful in its simplicity and then the word "belching" that brings me up short -- sort of like seeing this man in the midst of this dark night.
ReplyDeleteSo often we see those homeless, and wonder how they cope through the winter nights, and then you know that he's already lost in that haze of liquor.
ReplyDeleteWonderful Haibun full of observation and, might I say, Grace.
ReplyDeleteSuch contrast between the love for watching the sunset and the homeless man on a freezing winter night. The question is how do we maintain our equilibrium throughout it all. Quite a scene that haiku paints too!
ReplyDeleteI'm really enjoying winter's night stories - we have no snow as yet and the frost has disappeared this week. I like the way you juxtaposed the lovely description of the moon, 'half drum as night unspools threads of velvet' with the description of the homeless man. Winter is so hard for homeless people. I wonder where he went.
ReplyDeleteI so enjoy these kind of stories (and with a Haiku).
ReplyDeleteZQ
"Belching clouds of white". Marvellous. Thanks.
ReplyDeleteGreetings from London.
Sad what you see on a cold night and how much we take our own circumstance for granted Grace....
ReplyDeleteYou have captured the night and I wondered what became of the old man as he drifted into the darkness.
ReplyDeleteWonder filled reflection
ReplyDeleteBeautifully written. I feel for the elderly out in such freezing temperatures. I hope he found a shelter with room for him.
ReplyDeleteYour whole poem is stellar, but the haiku was killer. Yes, your prose is poetic of itself--like the 6-word stories we wrote on Twitter; stunning word smithing.
ReplyDeleteit is a mystery. well, life itself is a mystery. i love the write.
ReplyDeleteso poignant, Grace, so beautiful!
ReplyDeleteA lovely story, for you the peace love and warmth and endless stars and then unknown- and the sadness and loneliness.
ReplyDeleteSo succinct, poetic yet also brooding and philosophical, with pangs of guilt...
ReplyDeleteSadly not having a warm place to put ones 'stuff" is the fastest route to invisibility on dusk covered nights.
ReplyDeleteA mystery within, as nature takes its course. Ugg to cold and snow, can't wait for it to go.
ReplyDeleteI wonder where the homeless go.
ReplyDeleteWonderful, descriptive and superb ability to place readers in the place you write about. Thanks for sharing, and when time permits, check out what we're doing over at SayspireQuotes,http://sayspirequotes.com/
ReplyDeleteTake care,
Josh
Within the sadness, there was a tiny spark of magic as I wished for the homeless man to simply be St.Nicholas on his way home for a warm cup of cocoa in front of the fire...
ReplyDelete