Last week’s wild weather knocked most of the glorious cherry blossoms off the trees. We found ourselves walking through a wondrous pink “snow”, and noticed the tulips filled with it.

We sent a photo of this surprising landscape to a few friends. One sent back a haiku by the Japanese poet Dosho:

Hanadori no                     A bird in the blossoms,
Kumo ni isogu ya            Hurrying to the clouds,
Ikanoburi                         A paper kite.

 

Then ANOTHER friend sent this haiku:

Spreadinga straw mat in the field
I sat and gazed
At the plum blossoms.

 

…And we found this one by Basho*:

On stones covered with spring pinks
I’d like a few drinks
And then a good snooze.

They capture that singular moment much better than our photographs.

 

 

What will be the next blossoms to fall?

 

With thanks to Susan Dworski and David Saltman.

*Basho haiku courtesy of The Essential Haiku: Versions of Basho, Buson, & Issa (Essential Poets).