Seriously? What endless
depth of meaning can you
say in 17 clicks?
I know, English forms
have no such syllabic
binds,
though a line of 3 remains,
and you can’t get away
with cheating : haikus should not
be titled, and no sappy
dedication
will pass the litmus test—
from the monk
in meditation
in Kyoto,
pondering
every breath
in solemn brevity,
and when it comes
to life and death,
surely can’t be bothered
with your bleeding heart’s
truncation,
your former paramour,
how lovely that they were,
that everything which is
said
has been wrought a bazillion
times,
not only in an epic
penned by Sappho,
but in the blink
of an inch
on the page,
that’s shackled
every haijin
for centuries :
sunfall breaking clouds
a spill from my squint of eyes
gardens where we’d sat
with no room for I loved you,
no place to
inscribe
their beautiful name.
Andreas Gripp
November 26, 2024
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