wide snow,
all else perpendicular – the tall trees,
the icicles off the porch eve –
and I, too, am upright
in my solitude
this rainy a.m.
a splash
of forsythia
holds me
at my office window
looking down
on Central Street from the 28th floor,
toy-sized people –
and you in Paris,
a small, small story
frowning
at a newspaper on the floor
I think he’s depressed,
but no, he’s only more farsighted
since last I was home
with thumb
I press seed
into soil –
the long, slow silence
of gestation
such huge eyes,
I’m sorry to kill it –
still warm
I toss the wee body
into the bin
Larry Kimmel's tanka and haiku have been published in England, Canada, Romania, Australia, Russia and Japan, as well as throughout the US. His most recent books are this hunger, tissue-thin; and Blue Night & the inadequacy of long-stemmed roses, Second Edition, both from Modern English Tanka Press. He lives with his wife in the hills of western Massachusetts, USA.
Larry Kimmel's tanka and haiku have been published in England, Canada, Romania, Australia, Russia and Japan, as well as throughout the US. His most recent books are this hunger, tissue-thin; and Blue Night & the inadequacy of long-stemmed roses, Second Edition, both from Modern English Tanka Press. He lives with his wife in the hills of western Massachusetts, USA.