A sense of wonder

itsukushima
floating in air and water
spirit challenged

Itsukushima Shrine on the Island of Miyajima in the Inland sea of Japan. This is one of the most spiritual shrines in Japan. At low tide one can walk out to the giant Tori Gate that guides entry to the shrine. At high tide the shrine appears to float on the water and the giant Tori is surrounded by water. During the day thousands of pilgrams, tourists and other visitors arive via a short ferry ride from the mainland and wander the Shrine and many other religious and tourist attractions. Evening is the best time to appreciate the peace and tranquility of Itsukushima Shrine when almost all visitors have departed and local inhabitants have retired to their dwellings. This peacefullness is captured in a work of art by Takahiro Iwasaki commisioned by the National Gallery of Victoria in Melbourne Australia. The accurately scaled model is suspended from the ceiling to create an illusion of the real Shrine and Tori gate. Observors can walk around, crawl under and peer into the model. there are 14 interlocking parts to the model and in a semi lit room the work of art appears to be floating just like the real shrine at high tide.

getting colder

layers of grey
reflecting coldness
lonely days

One cold day early in Winter last year Jill and I both took photos of this scene with our phones. At the time I thought a haiku would come with the image. It has taken me time to finally post the image and haiku. We were looking out acros the Bay from Green Point in Brighton towards the Bellarine Peninsula. A navigation pole and marker buoy intrude on the space.

a sea of yellow

roadside stop
yellow heads waving
distracting

This canola crop was happily growing beside the Halls Gap to Ararat road on a sunny Spring morning. We had travelled to stay at Halls Gap for the annual native wildflowers exhibition. This exhibition is held at the Pomonal Public Hall situated not far from where the photos were taken. Pomonal is a beautiful little town nestled in the foothills of the Eastern Grampians, (Gariwierd National Park) on the Halls gap Ararat Road. Recently, (just over a week ago) we were devastated to hear a bushfire came from the mountains and raced down through Pomonal destroying 45 houses and many farm and property sheds. There has been no announcement yet of the loss to native wildlife and farm animals. These fires are currently contained but are not out. Meanwhile other fires have started and spread to the North East of Pomonal threatening other towns. These latest fires are so severe they are creating their own weather events that in turn generate lightning and start new fires. Meanwhile we have opposition politicians who continue to question climate change and try to challenge government plans to address elements of climate change Australia needs to face. There may come a time soon when some politicians will legally face the nation for the consequences of their destructive behaviours.

Remember

empty shelves
pandemic panic
empty minds

Almost four years have passed since the covid virus burst into our lives across the world. Our lives here have never returned to what they were in February 2020. I could almost write a book about how my life has been affected in so many ways, however I will not. All around us life has changed ; socially, environmentally, politically, economically and so quickly. The dominance of social media is upon us . It was 4 years ago when facebook and twitter cleared the toilet paper out of supermarkets in hours. Today it has just created the biggest Taylor Swift phenomenon here in Melbourne Australia in her life with the largest concert audiences ever. Life goes on and covid statistics now remain hidden in the background however significant they really are. We are changed forever? I remember The Beatles.

aerial acrobats

free flying

summer acrobats

life so short

Last Summer, (2022-23) our yards were filled with beautiful Dragonflies and Damselflies day after day. They flew, rested, chased and fed across the days. I was not up to capturing them in flight however at times a brief moment of rest allowed me a photographic event. At times I simply looked at them through the lens, wondering at their intricate beauty, and then away in flight and I would need to look for another to land somewhere. So far this Summer hardly any have been seen. We are hoping this is because of later hatchings. Some days have passed since a sighting yet we wait with anticipation.

Hunter of the Night

bird of prey

tawny frogmouth waits

night will come

After much procrastination I have returned to blogging. I missed the positive, supportive bloggers I follow and who follow me. This time there will be no more long pauses. The post covid blues have to be dispensed with. Maggie made her return appearance last week and today Ronovan has lured me with a haiku challenge of bird and night.

The Tawny Frogmouth is a Nightjar, not an Owl as many mistake them for. These beautiful birds are found all over Australia. They sleep all day disguising themselves as branches and not moving except for a blinked eye if woken up. At dusk they stir and begin hunting. In suburban Melbourne their prey are large moths and insects attracted by street lights. The bird sits on a branch. wire, pole or television antenna in the dark and suddenly swoops in for the kill. They are silent in movement which is very spooky and their call is also eerie being a repetitive booming noise.

To see how other poets respond to Ronovan’s challenge visit his post at https://ronovanwrites.com/2023/12/11/ronovan-writes-weekly-haiku-poetry-prompt-challenge-492-night-and-bird/#respond

Looking back

hilltop rest

ah safe from grassseeds

just for now

Most mornings Maggie and I walk through this park to start our day. Spring has reached its peak of natural awakings. Young birds are fledging, insects are multiplying and most plants are sharing new foliage and flowers. This morning we decided to no longer hide behind our covid withdrawal symptoms, return to our blog and begin a new spurt of creativity. Maggie can finally be trusted to briefly be alone out in a public space. Apologies for the lack of creativity in this photo however my I Phone at least recorded how we felt. Soon we will know how many of our fellow bloggers have left Haiku Hound open to receive. I look forward to reacquainting with fellow haiku artists.

floating

spirit clouds
drifting with the light
say goodbye

Another recent sunset at Ricketts Point. We never know what will happen until the last few minutes of sunset.

playtime

play erupts
out of comfort zone
free for all

Maggie enjoying the company of two of her favourite breeds, Pointers and Golden Retrievers with a Brown Labrodor directing the action.

This is my contribution to Ronovan Writes #Weekly #Haiku #Poetry Prompt #Challenge 351 COMFORT and Erupt. Follow this link to see how other haiku poets from all over the world respond to the challenge.

hibiscus

garden fire

amongst green and brown

blaze of red

This small Red Hibiscus has held on and survived being dug up by Maggie, replanted and finally re-located to a Maggie safe area. Now, 2 years later these beautiful coloured flowers appear individually, bloom for a couple of days, then shrivel up. We have to remember to water the plant regularly. A much larger, multi blooming Yellow Hibiscus thrives a few metres away.

tropical beauty
exposing bashful foliage
fiery red survivor