Colleen at Wordcraft poetry suggested writing a syllabic poem inspired by an art meditation video posted by Rebecca Budd on her chasing art.com website. https://chasingart.com/2023/06/02/the-national-gallery-5-minute-guided-meditation/
You see a cup on a pewter dish and a thornless rose. Actually the rose looks like more of a fantasy rose whereas the cup and dish are realistic. I found watching the video to be an amazing experience.
I wrote a haibun.
The Realism of Winter, The Fantasy of Spring
In this portrait of a cup of water, I find my mind focusing on the slivers of light on pewter and pottery. I have to be directed to see the large shadow on our right that is so obvious once pointed out. Then I note its power. The water looks refreshing enough to dive into if only I could make myself smaller like Alice. In fact, I feel myself becoming both smaller as the scene looms bigger in front of me and also larger as the space in my mind that this painting inhabits grows. Eventually I have to recognize the two aspects that poke at me, pay attention to me, they say. One is the fantasy flower with petals so curvy they could be dying or so unreal as not to include thorns. The other is the handles of the cup are misshapen. They don’t match, and only a child’s fingers could enter their spaces. Only a fantasy child like Alice.
Shadows of winter
once greeted bring forth treasures
of fantastic spring.
###
My girl Kana is the Box Queen. She is the one of my five cats who finds a box or bag the minute it enters the house. The other day she went one better. I set a buckled belt I am using for an exercise on the couch. When I turned back to it she had climbed in it.
On another note, I had a banner/header made with my two full-length poetry books and my two chapbooks made by someone who knows what they are doing because I clearly don’t. It’s for this blog and my social media. What do you think?
Love the Banner Headline, Luanne!
Also love the Box Queen – you know so much about cats and their behavior. I’m a novice – but trying to learn…
Thank you!!! haha, there are all kinds of memes and pix all over the internet about cats in boxes, but in my experience they like them to varying degrees. Some of them could care less. But Kana LOVES them. She is a big cat, and she likes to sleep in a tiny little box lid, for instance.
The banner is beautiful.
Kana looks chic.
I love the haibun. The prose portion is meditative, analytical, fantastical….then adds up into an optimistic haiku. My favorite surprise was tiny Alice.
Tiny Alice surprised me, too! She was just there. But it’s funny because there is a poem in Doll God, “Waking Up,” that has Alice in a teacup, which I only just remembered, so it must be a very important image to me. Kana says, thank you, minion!!!
Luanne, I forgot to mention Alice! She was a great surprise and I imagined her there in the video! You are so creative. Love it!
Oh thank you!
Love the pic of Kana! I have 4 box cats but no one has done anything as peculiar as a belt.
Haha, I am debating whether or not to tell Kana you called her peculiar. She thinks she is pretty cool. hahahahaha
She is cool but a bit eccentric! All good!
THAT is definitely Kana.
The banner is nice, and the haibun beautiful. I did a similar banner for my social media profiles.
I found your comment in spam! Thank you so much. I am not good at things like the banner but I am grateful for it!
👍
Luanne, I really enjoyed how you circled around and back to Alice and what a perfect concluding haiku. And awwww on Kana and the belt. Cats are purposeful in their acts to delight us, I’m sure of it.
She definitely delighted me! Thank you so much! So glad you enjoyed the haibun.
A thought-provoking haibun with lots of layers. I enjoyed it. Do I espy a “wanna make somethin’ of it” on Kana’s little feline face?
Thank you. Haha. Yes!!! You have her number.
You’re welcome! 😀
Kana is gorgeous! Interesting that we both thought about winter looking at the image!
Yes, and I am not sure why but there is something!
And thank about Kana!
Luanne, first… your haibun is excellent. I like how you let the video guide your words. I experienced it all over again with you. Thank you! Your girl Kana is beautiful! I also love your header. Excellent! 🧡
Thank you so much!!!! So glad you like the header. I am glad I had it made. Kana is such a pretty lady.
I like all of it — the halibut the kitty daintily sitting in the belt, and the new banner of your books–very nice!
Ellen, thank you so much. So happy you like it all. And I had to laugh at Siri’s halibut. She might be right!
Great job on the banner!
That cup looks like a matron with her hands on her hips, perhaps about to scold, but perhaps thinking better of acting rashly before thinking the situation through a bit more.
Thank you. Oh my, I love that image. I can see it!!!!!!
A beautiful post Luanne I enjoyed it in my quiet time.
The banner is great definitely use it!
The cat box Queen belt Queen she’s gorgeous 💜
Thank you so much. And Kana says thanks you (though she knows it haha). So glad you like the banner!
Kana is a great name for the cat… And yes I love the banner 💜
Thank you. So glad you like he banner. When I got Kana at the shelter her name was Nakana but that didn’t seem right!
No Nakana is too long 💜
Great minds 🙂
Luanne, its so nice to have friends who know what they are doing– the banner is gorgeous. Perhaps one day I will have enough books to display like that.
Your haibun is delightful. You took the meditation to a great level of enlightenment. I love it.
And your cat. Ha! She’s the cutest. I enjoyed visiting you today. Blessings.
Selma, thank you so much! It is surprising how the books accumulate. It took me forever to get the first one out. Then so much easier. XO
The haibun is wonderful; Kana amusing; the banner delightful
Yay so glad you enjoyed it all, Derrick!
Your banner is lovely and your cat is adorable. I like the reflection in this haibun. Very nice, indeed.
Thank you, Robbie! I had fun with this post!
Very creative Luanne 🙌
Thank you! I love that word!
I absolutely love your poem!!! Your banner is lovely also!!!
Thank you, Linda!
Darling cat!!! They do such funny things…:)
She is such a hoot. Well, they all are, but she takes herself and her sillinesses so seriously.
🙂 🙂 🙂
We now have 5 cats too. Our youngest, Grace, loves plastic bags. She will carry them around the house. She brought down my clear travel bag that had my medication in it when I was packing my suitcase. She will jump into trash cans or just turn them over to find plastic bags. She even drags snacks out of the cubbies in the kitchen.
Hahaha. What a silly girl! Enjoy these days. It seems to me they eventually change their behaviors without warning. Like how Perry used to make a career out of bringing his toys up and down everyday and putting them together. My dearly departed Mac used to call me Mom all the time. Then he stopped. By the way, one of my daughter’s cats eats plastic! Stuff like tampon wrappers etc. she’s a year old.
A perfect haibun Luanne! I love the little details that you have incorporated in it.
Thank you, Balroop!!!
I like the way you turned the meditation into a poem. And cats are always welcome! (K)
Thank you so much! Haha I know. Cats are great.
Kana is gorgeous. I love how your included Alice. She fits here.
Thank you! Kana says thank you ;)! Alice has this thing for cups and mugs!
A beautiful haibun with great imagination, Luanne! I love it. Your Box Queen Kana is so beautiful. How are you? Have you traveled and back?
Thank you, Miriam! I am back, and I need to write you about stuff going on . . . .
Welcome back, Luanne. Please write to me.
Hi Cindy, I always feel very strange when I first return to work. All slow like I’m swimming through jelly. I am glad your client is okay, you must have got a terrible shock. Congratulations on more lovely reviews.
Hi Robbie, was this meant for someone else?
I thought about that too, Luanne! This is such a lovely piece – I so enjoyed it 🙂
<3
David
And then I had a rabbit hole to enter wondering if it was the potter or the painter! Thank you, David!
Luanne, I loved the guided meditation on the cup of water. The cup I chose was a white porcelain cup with pink calla lilies and soft green leaves around it. This is a cup which I took from my sister when she was getting rid of stuff. Before this meditation I had not paid close attention to this cup except that I found it pretty. It brought me to look at the bottom of the cup which I discovered is a Jennifer Abbott Collection from Japan.
The meditation on the cup of water and the rose was enchanting. There is so much to see when one pays attention.
I love your banner, Luanne and your cat with a belt is very whimsical.
Finally, your poem is lovely.
Carol, thank you so much. Ah your cup sounds lovely! I really love guidance to paying attention, you know? So helpful to have others pointing things out in addition to what I notice myself. I love The Lilac Notebook and need to WRITE A REVIEW.
I really enjoy guided meditation and usually do a short ten minute one in the morning. This though was the first time that I did a guided meditation looking at a work of art.
Thank you for reading The Lilac Notebook, Luanne. I look forward to your review, whenever you have the chance. <3
I enjoyed the meditation that really delved into the picture and made me look at it again, and I found the poem beautiful. The banner is great and of course Kana is delightful!
Thank you so much, Andrea!