Self Portrait

Elizabeth Vigee le Brun 1755 - 1842

elegance captured
with her paint and brush
timeless french beauty

Carpe Diem # 1336

Jingle Bells in French (Vive le Vent) - Christmas song for kids with lyr...

Joyeux Noel !

First Line Friday - MLMM

alexi watched the snowfall
with narrowed eyes
maybe if he willed her to come
she would appear from behind a tree
if he could hold her just once
sink into her soul
find a few moments of peace
it would be enough

Nat King Cole- Chestnuts Roasting On an Open Fire (The Christmas Song)

hanging mistletoe
everywhere waiting for you
at Christmas

Heeding Haiku with Chevrefeuille - MLMM

Haiku Horizons

why remain silent
have a politically incorrect
merry christmas

Times Change

 in 1900
kids were
very well mannered
good handwriting
good written expression
product of
a simpler gentler time




now days written expression
not as good
but kids -  much more confident
with higher expectations




however
in all of these letters
they all reveal themselves 
to be children
sweet lovely children
something
that time does not change








MERRY CHRISTMAS TO ALL OF YOU

Carpe Diem # 1326

"She had met people who had lost the glow of being alive because they could no longer fight against loneliness and had ended up becoming addicted to it. They were, for most part, people who believed the world to be an undignified, inglorious place, and who spent their evenings and nights talking on and on about the mistakes others had made. They were people whom solitude had made into judges of the world, whose verdicts were scattered to the four winds for whoever cared to listen." [...] (Source: Brida by Paulo Coelho)


the folly of wisdom
one knows too much
at the very end
bitterness can lead to
frost bite of the soul

Carpe Diem # 1327

millicent maverick
on the other hand  decides
to go shopping instead


 

Transformation

chrysalis correction
a butterfly emerges
to pollinate flars




Carpe Diem# 1326

Pantoum

tick tock goes the clock
the cat sits by the fire
santa is on his way
everyone is asleep

the cat sits by the fire
the barn owl hoots
everyone is asleep
it's snowing outside

the barn owl hoots
santa is on his way
it's snowing outside
tick tock goes the clock

Saturday Mix Lucky Dip- MLMM

Snow

watching the snow fall
he still remembered the sunshine
thousands of miles away

Heeding Haiku with Chevrefeuille - MLMM

All we like Sheep have gone astray (Messiah) - Handel

Celebration

in the bleak midwinter 2000 years ago
a homeless refugee jewish child was born in a stable

in spite of attempts from various factions  in history
to white wash and erase the importance
of this momentous event which changed the world
his birthday has been celebrated ever since

may the christian tradition of christmas continue forever



MERRY CHRISTMAS
to everyone
especially to those who have been so kind
to leave comments on this blog throughout the year
PEACE BE WITH YOU ALWAYS
GOD BLESS

Midweek Motif - Poets United

Serenity

a butterfly
finds serenity in
her hand and heart

Carpe Diem # 

Sussex Carol (Willcocks) [King's - 2009, № 12]

my favourite time of  year
christmas lights and baubles
twinkling at night

he is coming
i see more smiles and hope
joy peeks through the clouds

Carpe Diem # 1319

acts of kindness
reflect an inner beauty
the only one that counts

Carpe Diem #1320

a sadness lingers
in unrequited love
ella's blue notes

Wordle #181 - MLMM

mesh lend forgettery decapitate hell external
effect incident fling june demagogue pop

               {  1 }

a demagogue  makes a request
lend me your ears
external impact/devastation
apostasy /penalty/ decapitation
an ocean of blood
a barbaric incident

pat a cake pat a cake
baker's man
bake me a cake as fast as you can
21 coptic christians
butchered on a beach
courtesy of the religion of peace





                        { 2 }

forgettery / a forgettable fling in june
with the cobbler's wife
consequences/ a mesh of lies
effect/ an eternal stint in hell


4 and twenty black birds
baked in a pie
l'enfer c'est les autres
not up in the sky
when the pie was opened
the birds began to sing
but not the coptic christians
their body parts were binned




preacher's theme song for 1777
pop goes the weasel

Carpe Diem # 1314 - The Nightingale

precious pretty bird
a power house of bright song
who made you little one

Bill Withers - Lovely Day (Original Version)

TROIKU

it was a lovely day
the gentle sea breeze stirred
lightly waving palm fronds

the sea blue green and white
sun shining on the surfers
gliding like dancers

you came back today
even the seagulls smiled
it's been a long time


it was a lovely day 
the sea blue green and white
you came back today 


Carpe Diem Haiku Kai

Sundays Whirligig # 138

 WORDS from End of Summer by Stanley Kunitz

clangs hinge air worm silo stubble iron blows light song over order 

at the burnt out ends and stubble of day
a light breeze blows
the demolition order waving in the air
over the iron gate to the old silo
clanging on its rusty hinge
whining a squeaky song

Marian's November Themes - Romance- Imaginary Garden With Real Toads

THIS WEEK'S WORDS come from "November for Beginners" by Rita Dove:
 easy, softening, give, ache, smell, gloomy, promise, spring, cargo, already, act, fool
Sundays Whirligig - # 139

 

you act the fool
you give me a headache when you're gloomy
you smell like a cargo of spice
you promise to take me sailing in spring
you are already having a softening effect on me
you are so easy to love

Sundays Whirligig # 139


<

Troiku

Heeding Haiku With Chèvrefeuille MLMM

first robin spotted
sweet and colourful
singing on a branch

 

the low lands are facing the dark
winter is almost here
months of gloom ahead

 

snow softly falls
a quiet covers the earth
peace reigns for a while

 

TROIKU

first robin spotted
the low lands are facing the dark
snow falls softly

 

 

 

Carpe Diem Haiku Kai # 1308

renaissance beauties
playing a game of chess
buried centuries ago

Carpe Diem Haiku Kai

the world abounds
in so much beauty
we only see it
at the end when
we are about to leave

The Secret Well Of Life - CDHK # 1306

 to love and be loved
 to give and to receive
 everyone needs a piglet

Carpe Diem Haiku Kai # 1305

behind the veil
mystery awaits
new life ?

Chevrefeuille




we cross alone
sad to be leaving
one way journey

Carpe Diem Haiku Kai # 1304

at sunrise
birds praising their Creator
without questions

Chevrefeuille





simplicity
key to enlightenment
purity of heart

Tall Poppy Loppers

consequences of
dumb down for all
democracy rules

Rondolet For Ruth

at ruthie's place
we had lovely sunday lunches
at ruthie's place
there was lots  of laughing and joy
but since she was taken from us
things will never be the same now
at ruthie's place






RIP  22/6/2012

imaginary gardens with real toads

Sunflower Haibun

broken sunflower
seeds spread all around his stem ;
bringing joy next year

Chevrefeuille

Every year she waits for joy. Every year it becomes less and less. Now she just grasps any joyful moment no matter how fleeting and cherishes it , never counting on a future.It can all be taken away in a flash.

carpe diem
cherish the moment
hold it close

Carpe Diem Haiku Kai

Carpe Diem Haiku Kai # 1232

 Toulouse Lautrec

tears
splash into wine
dreams

Chevrefeuille


drowning sorrows
demons swim to the surface
staying afloat

Legends of Jazz: Benny Golson - Killer Joe

you buy her a drink 
hold her hand
smile
then ask her name
she hesitates
it always feels
like someone else

Carpe Diem Haiku Kai

mysticism
the truth revealed
in a puddle


 

the hidden script
beneath the simplicity
of a weed

Carpe Diem Haiku Kai

he cracked her code
she gave him her secrets
gift wrapped in smiles

Grace Jones - I've Done It Again

she showed him her heart
spilled the beans now he knows
she's just another tragic
and i've done it again
done it again done it again

Carpe Diem Haiku Kai 
#1286 Love

Carpe Diem Haiku Kai - Love

you the only one
who makes me feel
i am worth something

Sundays Whirligig

 135

 This WEEK'S WORDS come from "To Catch a Fish" by Elise Greenfield:

wish fish hook concentrate appetite tell

 how spot works whole better catch






it would be a whole lot better
to concentrate on hooking and catching a fish
rather than telling people
how to spot the loony
how to wish upon a star
0R
how to decrease your appetite

134

THIS WEEK'S WORDS come from "Jaguar" by Francisco X. Alarcón:

 

almost park people smelling fragrance rumbling 

constellations  fur wild untamed spirit jungle

 

    

 

 wild jungle types in furs

almost untamed people

rumbling in the park

smelling of alcohol

a fragrance not quite in the spirit

of communing with heavenly constellations

 

 

Week Four - Life Is Beautiful

Carpe Diem Winter Retreat 2017 : Life Is Beautiful 

Day 24


a glimpse of white
on a wet day in winter
hanging petticoat


Day 25




sky tinged with danger
another cyclone on its way
devastating beauty


Day 26















it's spring again
mr banana dreads
this time of year




 Day 27


 

 holocaust victim
 expresses his opinion
 on the snow

Day 28 

 

a coral garden
the home of sea creatures
being destroyed


 Day 29


 
 dancing in the rain
 childhood innocence
 precious time in  life



Day 30




cuddling under
his big soft velvety ear
strange bedfellows



 Day 31

  `

goodbye october
life is beautiful
captured in snippets

Week Three - Life Is Beautiful

Carpe Diem Winter Retreat 2017 : Life Is Beautiful 

Day 15






running late again
waiting in the wintry cold
thoughts of tea and sympathy

Day 16




a small jewel
in the bustling big city
a quiet place to dream

Day 17


after a hard day
one of life's great joys
a hot bubble bath


Day 18 




beauty found everywhere
tomatoes on the kitchen sink
nasturtiums in a cup

 Day 19





child's memory
of her mother
a fragrant beauty


 Day 20


 
 prickly and sharp
 nature's sentries
guarding the desert




 Day 21


 

a young widow
catches the cool breeze
pondering her  future

Day 22



magic memories
twilight in a gentler time
living on the beach


Day 23



beautiful flowers
do not bring a smile to her face
freedom on her mind