Star

Image: Star of Prophet Dawood

Note: Prophets of the  great faiths of the world. These

are some of the Christians to Muslim equivalents.  Am not familiar

with the Jewish faith. Hopefully someone can enlighten

Christianity         Islam

Adam                    Adam

Moses                  Musa

Noah                     Noh

Abraham             Ibrahim

Isaac                      Ishak

David                     Dawood/Daud

Joseph                  Yusuf

Jesus                     Isa

The Star of David

Mutual sharing of greatness

With Providence’s guide

Seven sided for

The Jewish faith, eight sided

For the Muslim faith

Not a surprise for

David is Daud. A shared

Prophet of both faiths

Written for Chev’s haiku at CARPE DIEM #203 with prompt  - star

Birds

                                                                                Atrribution: Dick Daniels
Image: A Puerto Rican Tody
Source: Wikimedia Commons (here)

I have wished a bird would fly away,

And not sing by my house all day
Have clapped my hands at him from the door
When it seemed as if I could bear no more          
                                                                                         Robert Frost – A Minor Bird
I stood by the edge of the forest

In awe of the greatness of nature

The trees so close with branches racing to the sky

Vying for the sunlight in order to survive

Chirping of the birds hidden from view

Melodious in their bid for birds at play

To hear and to see  a yearning so desired

If only it could happen at that moment in time

In keeping with the warmth of the day

I have wished a bird would fly away

I had my rest when snug in the house

Leaving  nature’s best outside the four walls

For it could maintain the peace so radiant

I would rather not invite the forest in

With the crescendo of bird-songs all too loud

Which I sometimes found to my dismay

An invasion of sound with lots of confusion

In a way to cause much aversion

Creating a din by the forest was a better say

And not sing by my house all day

The neighborhood kids were often seen

In groups at the playground nearby

I had engaged them  engrossed 

But at times they were overly boisterous

They could be a nuisance to the neighbors

One particular lad often felt so sore

Getting bullied by others who were bigger

But who still thought he could fare better

Felt pity for him and called him over

Have clapped my hands at him from the door

Kids at play could be vicious

Where adults could play their part

To intervene at times where necessary

But sometimes things got unwittingly hard

Where neutral grounds were brought into play

Kids these days could have games galore

Where adults found themselves lost

Sadly no way adults could indulge in such

I found it to be also a chore and a bother
When it seem as if I could bear no more

Written for Sam's hosting at d'Verse Form For All : Paying Tribute, Page and The Glosa

The glosa is a Form from the late 14th century
and was popular in the Spanish court. The introduction,
the cabeza, is a quatrain quoting a well-known poem
or poet. The second part is the glosa proper,
expanding on the theme of the cabeza, consisting
of four ten-line stanzas, with the lines of the
cabeza used to conclude each stanza.
Lines six and nine must rhyme with the borrowed tenth.

The wild truth

                                                                               Attribution: Pengo
Image: The Truth Window
Source: Wikimedia Commons (here)

Gnawing at one’s conscience

Not wanting to forget

Not just yet

But it’s been building up slowly

Strongly by the day

Every which way

Time to make amends hold it by the horns

Ask for the reason why

Look it in the eye

Answers aren’t forthcoming, why this is so

Was it too entrenched?

Let’s take aim

Never to provoke a bear in hibernation

Not to poke a bee hive

So  learn to survive

A strong boost
It's not a ruse

Make the most

Nothing to lose!

The wild truth!

Written for Kim's hosting at Poets United, Verse First with prompt – The wild truth

Sumo

                                                                                   Attribution: FourTildes
Image: Sumo Wrestler Masuraumi
Source: Wikimedia Commons (here)

Male dominated

A sport steeped with traditions

in modern Japan

Towering above

other underlings weighing

some four hundred pounds

Stomping and pushing

Grappling the thick loin cloth

Hissing and heaving

A fight lasts seconds

but adrenalin flow rise

to  its peak all night

Written for Chev’s Carpe Diem #202 with prompt  - tower

Flowers

                                                                                Attribution: Korian

Image: Tulips in the Garden

Source: Wikimedia Commons (here)

Note: Tulips are edible (see here)

Does one ever realize it

The wonder of  flowers

The appeal is explicit

To many of our senses

It’s sweet and aromatic

A base for perfumery

Aroma by name specific

Supporting an industry

Its appeal to sight

Of brilliant colors

A darling of right

For palettes and cameras

Taste is another factor

Busy bees able to confirm

In their quest for nectar

A life giving form

Taste is not confined to bees

Humans take to consume

Tulips among others is believed

As edible and can be taken

Not forgetting the feel

To touch and savor its body

Delicate but a kiss can seal

Any mishandling impropriety

What if the world is devoid of flowers

It would be just greenery without colors

Written for Joe's hosting at d'Verse OpenLinkNight #97

Frustrations

                                                                                      Attribution: LaurMG

Image: Frustrated Man
Source: Wikimedia Commons (here)

The joy of having

someone dear to share joy and

sorrow was profound

A shoulder to cry

on. A pillar of strength that

extended support

But it came down with

a crash. Not expected to

be wretchedly dumped

Strong foundations just

floundered. Betrayal thumbed one

squarely on the face

Written for Leo's Haiku Heights #249  with prompt  -  betrayal

Human Failures

                                                                          Creator: Marcos Macias

Image: Goddess Astarte ( A sketch of a goddess is a better option than that of a devil)

Source: Wikimedia Commons (here)

The devil may care

Sworn since the dawn of times to

Lead humans astray

The devil in you

Succumb to base instincts on

its instigation

The angel in us

As elusive as diamonds

Dropping from the sky

Devils unchained and

Angels shackled are the cause

Of human failures

Written for Chev's CARPE DIEM #201 with prompt - The devil

Layers of Flow

                                                                                    Attribution: Paul Anderson
Image: River Tame in Full Flow after Heavy Snowfall
Source: Wikimedia Commons (here)

The layers of wellness rightly transformed

Pandering to the whims of a kind soul

Paving a flow of goodness with a penchant

For the well-being of a loving couple

A flow that fulfills the yearnings of a heart

A paragon of honor extending an olive branch

Hunger of a kind slaving for a morsel of truth

What can the response be if not one so blunt

Of a somber disregard yet one ever so smooth

A flow that yields a rhapsody of brilliance

Can one be expected to solicit for sympathy

Lest one is snubbed for being overly lavish

Let the truth be stamped with words of solidarity

Soothing the wild feelings contrary to one’s wish

A flow that tugs at the turbulence of tyranny

Submitted for Locomente's hosting at One Single Impression with prompt #273- flow and 

shared with Kerry's hosting at Real Toad's Open Link Monday

The 'Keeper

                                                         Lighthouse Dandelions by Jamie Wyeth
Image: Courtesy of Tess' Mag

Happy as a lark swooping and gliding

The morning sun a partner all day in play

Of all kinds and sizes enjoying the morning

All day all night shrieking without a care

Such is life outside so free without restrictions

The  eagles and hawks surveying the horizon

The migratory birds and sea-gulls in abundance

But not of the light-house keeper a lone occupant

The beginning of today is akin to yesterday’s dawn

So it’ll be for the rest of the day morning till dusk

By extension it is no different the whole of the month

The uneventful life of a lonely soul then and in the past

No ordinary folk can match the dedication

A responsibility of a true mariner’s portfolio

A lonely life all alone and one of deprivation

Taken for granted for which not many may know

The swaying of the dandelion in the light breeze

Is the only living thing within the keeper’s reach

Written for Tess' Mag #169 and shared with Poets United, Poetry Pantry #150

A Crushing Blow

Image: The given words

He was a cut above the rest

so he believed. But an opaque squint

on his nebulous past kept haunting

him. He did not dare breathe a word
on his otherwise unblemished record

His reflects were perfect, his timings

were good. He notched winnings
with crushing blows to his opponents.

He came with fists blazing. He had visions of

a  great champion. He was untouched

But the stigma kept hovering over his head

It cast a bleak future over designs of

him as a torch bearer of his generation

It was a mistake of the past that kept

tripping  him. After all it was just a slab

of fix a small portion that would not cause
real harm, not much anyway

Sadly, a sordid episode was not easily forgotten

by the fraternity. An icon with no tainted past

was expected no less which he could not fulfill

A slight baggage on his young shoulders kept

gnawing on his ambitions. It broke his little heart

Written for Sunday Whirl, A Baker’s Dozen - wordle #109

Micro Fiction 2

Image: Courtesy of Grandma's

Whassup pussy-cat?

You appear lost.You

are all alone very

unlike a gadabout

cat.Where are your

other friends.They

ought to be with you

(140 characters)

Grandma's Goulash at Succinctly Yours week #113 invites a Micro Fiction of not exceeding 140 characters with the above image and to include where possible a word of the week - gadabout

A Peek at Asean

Kelvin at d’Verse suggested for us to post some Asian experience pleasant or otherwise. Being Asian myself I reflected on what it had been. I dug into my arsenal of pictures and realized that there is one that doesn't discriminate. The ‘jungle is neutral’ and the scenes are beautiful. The environment opened up for whomsoever who chose to venture out.

I wish to share some recent ones here which are representative of the landscape in Malaysia, Indonesia and I imagine the Philippines and Thailand as well. These are  typical of the Asean region in South East Asia. Just an array of images with no accompanying write-ups save for some descriptions only.

 Image:1 Scenic lake scene

 Image:2 Inland river scene

 Image:3 Typical greenery of secondary undergrowth

 Image:4 Undisturbed beach that dot the coastline

 Image:5 Venturing inland through narrow gravel roads

 Image:6 Trekking through secondary jungle

 Image:7 Hank (on the right) having a feel of stones that litter the stream

 Image:8 Trekking through some cultivated jungle clearing

 Image:9 Fording across a fast flowing river

Image:10 Nearer home. Had my mango tree trimmed recently. Two workers did an excellent job

Image:11 Our artificial waterfall in the backyard

Written for Kelvin's hosting at d'Verse, Poetics: Asians are Ugly, something  on an Asian experience

Friends

                                                                            Attribution: Grzegorz Wysocki

Image: Dinosaur Eggs in the Museum of Earth, Poland

Source: Wikimedia Commons (here)

Fallen off with friends

Egged on with desire to

Reconcile again

Wiser and matured

Realized choice of true friends was

Never ending quest

Make friends with many

For among them are gems to

Cultivate with love

Written for Leo’s Haiku Heights #248 with prompt - egg

What Choice?

                                                                                          Author: where is..
Image: Demonstration and a protest.
Source: Wikimedia Commons (here)

On his own volition he left them

He had debated the various issues

He just could not reconcile his conscience

Tried as he did he questioned his dues

In the face of and against all norms

With a heavy heart he walked on

It was already a week into submission

It tugged at his person, was it fair?

What about the others in the coalition

He did not keep track he was not aware

He did not care as it wore off his energy

He gave his all why must they be so edgy?

It was a long while that he wracked his mind
On reflection, in all velleity he softened his hard-line
He thought of giving in to knock at his stance
He might when he could counter his firm stand!

It was a long haul but let it be he eventually decided
In the first place they should not have been one-sided!

Submitted for Anna’s hosting at d’Verse, Meeting the Bar:  volition and velleity

The Weak

                                                                                   Author: D Sharon Pruitt
Image: Hunger

Source: Wikimedia Commons (here)

Way of the world, not

vigilant enough the weak

grapples with problems

The scales of justice

Favors the rich who peddle

Influence and money

Where is the fairness

The deprived helplessly cast

aside and trampled

Written for 3Word Wednesday with words vigilant, helpless and trample and shared with Chev's CARPE DIEM #197 with prompt justice

A Wedding

 Image:1 Before the Big Day, support given by close friends

 Image:2 The lovely bride together with Faridah

 Image:3 Halim and Bella 'saperti pinang dibelah dua'

Image:4 The newly-weds together with, granny, Mak Ku and Halim's kins

Note: 1 Hank and family traveled north to Alor Star to attend the wedding of his niece last weekend

Note: 2 Please see earlier postings  (here) and (here)

One to be really at peace

The true being of a soul

Tied in matrimonial bliss

To be as brave and bold

The whole wide world pleading

Opening up all its goodness

Two love-birds treading

On life’s offerings in fullness

Dainty bride brightly dressed

In all decorum sitting demurely

By the groom’s side manifests

A love pure and simple with dignity

The bridegroom smiling broadly

In anticipation and feeling entirely

Confident with added responsibility

To procreate a lineage of a family 

Written for Claudia's hosting at  OpenLinkNight week 96

Bridge

                                                                                       Author: Live Forever
Image: Old Bridge in Mostar, Bosnia
Source: Wikimedia Commons (here)

Of human failures
miseries and sufferings
that wrought pain for all

Of human conflicts
destruction of societies
built over the years

Bridging the divide
is a great challenge to test
the human resolve

Written for Leo's Haiku Heights #247 with prompt - bridge

Hurt

                                                                              Picture by Togan Gokbaker
Image: Courtesy of Tess' Mag

Note: Been on the road and behind in answering comments. Will come back shortly. Apologies!

It hurt him bad
She felt it too
Not a big spat
But what could she do

Her mother was too harsh
She felt it also
Was mean for her to ask
Her hubby to just 'go'

What was it with her mom
Against him she couldn't fathom
He thought she should not be alone
To visit her mother's home

But her mom had the heart to decide
To ask them to smoke outside!
She had just been a week as his bride
She too sacrificed to be by his side

Written for Tess' Mag #168 and shared with Kerry's Open link Monday at Real Toads

Come what may!

The dreamy faraway look

attesting to something that 

is on his mind. What can be  so damning, 

so worrying, so as to put brakes

on his attention span

He is determined to let bygones be bygones

It is not to cause him to

lose sleep. It wore him off before but not this time

By now he can already anticipate

Come what may!

But what is eating her

There are times he asked himself

Can he go on like this?

He is short of revealing the episode

But it is not him to rekindle the old hurts

The old wound might just fester

and get out of sync

It had involved third parties before

Those dear to his heart

He can't afford to extend the reach

There must be a finality

Come what may!

Written for One Single Impression #272 with prompt rekindle and Carry on Tuesday #205 Come what may

Adam and Eve

                                                                               Attribution/User: Yann
Image: Why Adam Sinned, A 1904 Sheet Music Cover
Source: Licensed through Wikimedia Commons (here)

Note: Jabal ar Rahmah ( Mount of Mercy) where it was believed Adam and Eve was
reunited after their wanderings. Spinsters have been known to pray there in the hope of
being rewarded with a man of their dreams.

Therein Adam and
Eve, Man and Woman destined
to create a lineage

Succumbed to the snake's
guiles, whence united at the
Jabal ar Rahmah

What would the outcome
be if bite of the apple
had not been taken

Humankind within
Heaven's gates still wallowing
in all luxuries?

Written for Chev's CARPE DIEM #191 with prompt The Lovers (VI) Tarot

Daredevil

Image: A black-bird had outwitted me to my ripe papaya.

. 

Note: The fruit had ripened to slight orange in color the day before and ready
to be picked the following morning. But the bird was faster. This had happened
twice before. For good measure  this time it even came with a look-out to make
sure the coast was clear.

Daredevil of a

kind.  It set its own designs

Scrambled in that fast

Zeroed in to my

ripe papaya.  Quick on the

draw. Its third success

The fruit turned orange

yesterday.  But this morning

it was half eaten

The culprit had sneaked
in that fast. Now it even

came with a look-out

Written for Leo's Haiku Heights #245 with prompt daredevil. Shared with d'Verse OpenLinkNight week 95

The Fruit Gatherer

                                                                              Image by Mary Cassatt, 1892

Image: Young Woman Picking the Fruit of Knowledge
Source: Courtesy of Tess' Mag

The fruit of knowledge is stuck all over

The fruit gatherer is the one who is observant

In picking out what she sees are better

Though sometimes may not be that relevant

But just the same she picks them up anyway

The kind of knowledge may not be needed then

It does not really matter, just pick them up everyday

To store away for use for later events

The danger is when she moves around with eyes shut

Not knowing or bothering either way of things around

It’s regressive for to progress on is not to end up a dud

Losing out on knowledge that are likely to be found

Not unlike a zombie or an uncaring robot

For she is a thinking and functioning being

If only she makes it a point to walk about

With eyes open, sensitive to what she’s seeing?

Written for Tess' Magpie Tales #167 and shared with Kerry's Real Toad's Open Link Monday

Fortune-telling

Image: Courtesy of Grandma's

Hear out the parrot
Coalesce your efforts
Exploit your potential
for wealth is in your
hands.Your latent talents
ought to garner riches

(140 characters)

Grandma's Goulash #111 challenged us to write a Micro Fiction of not exceeding
140 characters based on the image above and to include the word coalesce 

Come With Me!

                                                              Attribution: Feliciano Guimaraes
Image: Anonymous Walking Shadows
Source: Licensed through Wikimedia Commons (here)

Come with me, I said
We’ve had it all made
Just you and me
Venture across the country
Foster feelings of  fraternal ties
With kins we bade good-bye
Long ago when we sought
To venture forth abroad
To seek our fortune
Which was then the norm

Come with me, I said
You remember the fate
Of those who had cold feet
Not wanting to make a bid
To change their life-style
But to stay on awhile
Which later turned to years
After which they discard the urge
To ever venture out again
Not wanting to try and gain

Come with me, I said
The plans had been laid
Visions of wealth bountiful
Picked at ease plentiful
Stand up and be counted
Garner all the efforts
The strength of purpose
Made up without rehearse
To make a bold stand
All set to implement

Come with me, I said
It just couldn't wait!
Let's pay them a visit!

Written for Keith's Carry On Tuesday #204 with prompt Come with me, I said and Sandy's
One Single Impression #271 with prompt  Feel/Feelings and Mary's hosting at Poetry Pantry #149

Visual Satisfaction

Image: Hank's sketch of a bamboo cut done a few minutes ago

Note: Chinese painting or Japanese ink painting always fascinate me but apparently 

they're that technical. Special paper and brushes are very necessary to start with. 

Ordinary drawing paper and the normal brushes as done above lacks the desired effects.

Is it a myth not to be aware of one's desires
Is it not reality to take control of one's yearnings
Strength that is ingrained within
Needs a twitch and a tickle to notice
Often without realizing and often at odd times

Comes a time in one’s life

At that moment of peace and quiet

Of savoring tranquility and moments

Where one desires to be left alone

To find an idyllic setting

A profound realization of suddenness

On whatever pretext to fulfill an urge

To do one better and find solace

A whiff of inspiration engulfs

It creates an onslaught

That overwhelms

Time constraints present less restrictions

The wee of the morning or the heat of afternoon

It tugs at the conscience to take to paper and pencil

For an immediate reaction is vitally necessary

Lest it just disappears into thin air

Note it down in that little note-book

Sketch it on something tangible not in one’s mind

For there’s a treasure trove waiting to be tickled

From the abyss in the subconscious to reality

Poets, artists or any creative mind

Will need to succumb to the call

Or it’ll be lost forever

Written for Fred's hosting at d"Verse's Poetics: mythsConceptions and mythAdventures

Honey

                                                        Attribution: Scott Bauer USDA ARS

Image: Honey
Source: Wikimedia Commons (here)

Honey, ever so sweet

Never missing breakfast

together just two of us

It's heavenly, it's blissful

Ever like two young lovers

rekindling back the old flames

of love nurtured through the years

Never another moment to match

What do we have here?

Honey and toast the most

healthy of foods don't you think!

Yes, nectar of sorts of varied flowers

Regurgitation and evaporation

A process acted through the ages

The hard working honey bees

In honeycombs storing them as honey

Human kind with all good intentions

Rob them of their nature's best

But they slave and slog still on

Injustice not a restriction

Written for Grace's hosting at d'Verse OpenLinkNights week #94

Damage Control

                                                                                 Attribution: Ingrid Taylar

Image: Picking up the pieces

Source: Licensed through Wikimedia Commons (here)

Riding high hoping

never the need to look back.

The future beckons

Doors opening wide

Opportunities  galore

The sun shines brightly

Dirty play rears its

ugly head.  Ambitions get

stunted. Wrong cards played

Grovelling in the

dark. Picking up the pieces

Familiar story 

Written for Poets United's Poetry Pantry #148

Strength

                                                                                Attribution: Cliff
Image: Triumph Tulip Strong Gold
Source: Licensed through Wikimedia Commons (here)

Awakening is             

realization of what is

strong and what is weak

Lacking in strength

can be overcome but

not lack of resolve

It needs passion to

push and build the sheer make up

of Man under siege

Written for Chev’s CARPE DIEM # 182 with prompt awakening and Kerry's
hosting at Real Toad's Open Link Monday 

Piggy-back

Image: Courtesy of Grandma's Goulash

A beetle might appear

small but it is no way

to overtake like so

To vie for first place

must still be subject

to the rules of the game

(140 characters)

Grandma challenged us to write a micro fiction of not more than 140 characters
based on the picture provided above and to include the word of the week, - vie.

Thanks for correcting the link, Grandma! Didn't realize it!

Written for Grandma's Goulash week 110

A Kamishibai

                                                                                   Attribution: Jm210279

Image: A Catamaran

Source: Licensed through Wikimedia Commons (here)

Note: 1 Chev aka Krisjaan introduced the concept of Kamishibai in his CARPE DIEM
today. It’s a traveling story-teller of old Japan who made his rounds going from village to
village with stories many in the form of a haibun. A haibun is a prose together with a set of haiku.

Note: 2 The catamaran we were on was similar complete with sails. We were given
a 20 mins instruction on safety before putting out to sea. It was very necessary as
it was fast and it was open.I had then just been awarded a Bronze Medallion (here) a
life savings medal which made me a qualified life-saver so it was ok for me.

I now wish to recount what a thrilling experience I had through a haibun.

This happened many years ago when I was

just a 16 year old school boy. Our school was

by the sea. Capt Preedy who was on the faculty

was a sea-faring naval officer who owned a
catamaran. It was stored in a shed by the sea-side

One Sunday, I was fortunate enough to have

volunteered together with 1 other to help

out at the shed. After some cleaning and

clearing chores, Capt Preedy decided to

take the catamaran out to sea. Surprises

of surprises, the 2 of us were invited on

board. It was such a thrill!

It  was as fast as a speed boat depending on
the wind then. It was more risky as it was
open. We could be thrown into the water so
a life jacket was mandatory.

We were taken for a spin not far from shore for

quite some time (I don’t quite remember

how long now) I had been on a boat, sampan,

and raft, (later a kayak at the Outward Bound
School)

But nothing beats a catamaran. 

Such excitement! A

catamaran ride never

forgotten. Such bliss!

The wind  brushing the

cheeks. Wisps of hair in

the face and the eyes

Salt water splashing

everytime it hits the waves

It was so thrilling!

Written for Chev's CARPE DIEM with prompt kamishibai and Karin's hosting at d'Verse
to recall a trip