Summer in the Northwest

Well..we finally have summer...hot and humid in the day time ..and dramatic thunderstorms at night....lightning striking as the sun sets...it's beautiful...and warm and I feel LAZY.....my hen Dexter is lying on the back porch....like an old dog...
Our garden is planted..and my white peonies are about to bloom...but I caught deer sneaking into the yard last night....and I wonder will I get to photograph my favorite flowers this year or will they be eaten????

If you haven't read my blog in awhile..I am trying diligently to post a haiku or poem and a photo every day....so here goes!


Summer rainy season!
Talking together passing by,
straw cape and an umbrella.
(Buson, 1700s Japan)

More Poetry and Photos

Well, I tried to do this every day...but I couldn't....I am amazed at people that blog every day....I take my hat off to them..seriously...I am just jotting down a poem or two...and adding photos...and still...it takes time...
Today...one short poem....because it is so breathtaking..that I decided it should stand by itself...




Everyone stands alone at the heart of this earth
Stunned by a ray of sunlight
and suddenly it is evening.



by Salvatore Quasimodo (1901-1968)
an Italian poet born in Sicily.
The Central Figure of Hermeticism--an Italian movement that took its initial inspiration from the work of the French Symbolists.

A Haiku a Day Keeps the Doctor Away

Well...
here is my second poetry and photography blend....Eventually I would like the poetry and the photos to reflect each other...but for now..I am simply not going to worry about it...I'd rather just do it..and not stress...I have so many photos in my camera...I have a new Mac in a box on the floor..I have quite a few filled memory cards from the last 3 weeks..basically, it is a disaster..so why not sweep it all under the rug..and pull out a little poetry....a few photos..that have nothing to do with said poetry and call it a night....

Enjoy!!!

I love haiku..because it is about the every day most ordinary things..and yet by framing these scenes in such a delicate and touching way..the mundane becomes a tiny moment of beauty...

Sometimes it is the words..that bewitch...although they often seem clumsy in translation from Japanese into English.. Often it is the image the words create in my mind....Haiku is organized and written in seasons..so I will stick to the summer Haiku!

These are also from Buson (1700s)


Lodging a priest tonight,
how happily the mosquito net
is being hung up.


White plum flowers!
The fragrance of an inkstone
in the Chinese guest house.

A summer river being crossed,
how pleasing!
Sandals in my hands.

Poets and Photographers Series Day 1

I have noticed that many photographers love poetry..and that some poets are photographers. I think they are similar art forms..in that they involve SEEING....looking deeply...calmly at the minute details of light, shadow, form..
They evoke an emotional response...to a simple statement..

This is something I love to do and it is easy for me...because I love both art forms..
I am going to try posting a poem or haiku a day..and a photo or two....just for fun..

I hope you will enjoy it....it is easy for me. I am probably not going to be posting my own poetry...but who knows....I will start with my favorite poets. I love haiku and I love other forms of Asian poetry....and I love Mary Oliver (the greatest American poet)..And, these are the poetry books I keep around the house....along with some compilations...so here goes!

Keep it simple, brief....open your eyes and heart..and look around! I dedicate this series to my dearest friend Ivy....a great poet and lover of photography.


Time of summer clothes,
and someone on the pathway through the field,
showing faintly white.



Into water fell
its blossoms and disappeared,
plum tree on the shore.


I can never stop with just one haiku! These two are by Haiku Master Buson (1700s)

One Woman Who Inspires Me...and more!

I have a beautiful friend Kerri who I met through the internet....We live in different states and have never seen each other in person. She has several lovely etsy shops:
Ten Things where she sells bohemian style jewelry and A Peace of Cake, where she sells her gorgeous photography. Kerri calls herself a casual girl obsessed with creating. When I first opened my etsy shop, she "found" me and sort of took me under her wing....She has a gorgeous blog, where she shares her great eye and style...She just began a feature on her blog..where she interviews Ten Women Who Inspire Her. There are fashion designers and jewelry makers and photographers and other creative women...who are dedicated to pursuing their dreams and to helping others. In this first piece she introduces the ten women, asks them how they got started on their particular journey. It is interesting, beautifully illustrated and I am sure it will inspire you as well...I can't wait to see the answers to the next questions and find out more about these women. The photographs today are from Kerri's two shops, her jewelry designs and photography and this is a gorgeous photo of Kerri and her daughter...When I think of Kerri, I think of kindness, generosity of spirit, style, fashion, passion for creating! She loves the ocean and her family of surfers, bright, gorgeous colors, and all art forms, exotic and ethereal...

You can probably all SEE by now..that I am blog layout challenged...So to view Kerri's inspirational blog...please click on the beautiful flower image on the right hand side bar...

Small Town Girl?

Is it just me? When I am in the city, I long for nature...And, when I am in the country....I miss the city....? I guess...I enjoy variety.....

I'll be traveling again soon.....but right now I am enjoying the breathtaking spring..we are having here in the pacific northwest....It is raining every day....and everything is so green. When the sun comes out...the sky is so clear..and the clouds are spectacular...And, being a photographer, I LOVE clouds...don't you? We are having a wet early summer....and the lilacs are just starting to open....gorgeous birds are every where....people are heading up to the lake...and, every where I look..there is something begging me to photograph it!!!

Two from Haiku Master Buson...(Japan 1700s)

In evening wind--
water is slapping against
the legs of a blue heron


Far and near, far and near
sound of cascading waters--
the fresh new leaves.