Autumn tanka challenge

[Saionji Shonagon]

It's almost November and you know what THAT means!

Here's the concept:
Write one tanka (waka)* a day for the month of November.

*Resources on tanka:
www.ahapoetry.com/TANKA.HTM
www.americantanka.com/
www.wodefordhall.com/heianpoetryjam.htm

The spirit of this poetic form being the impermanence of this dewdrop life, no other make-ups are permitted. If you miss a day, you miss a day and as in real life, you never get it back. (You're on the honor system here....)

No limits on subject matter other than any you chose to impose upon yourself. Hopefully, some moment in your day will inspire you to write about it.

If you write more than one tanka a day, fine. However, you may not carry over tanka to other days. You have to write a poem on each day.

(If you are inspired to "answer" someone else's poem, great. Personally, if I do so, I am not going to
count it toward my daily assignment. The idea is to come up with something myself each day. What you do is up to you.)

Adherence to the 5-7-5-7-7 line/syllable count is required, otherwise it's not a tanka.

It's poetry, not stereo instructions. It should say something and it should make sense.

No rewrites. (I know, I'm evil, but it's part of the process of practicing this form. At least for me.)

If you want to share your poems, you may post them to this thread.

This challenge originally premiered in 2008.

Good luck everyone!

[Saionji Shonagon]

11/1/14

I never saw it,
As we sped through walls of mist
On the Shinkansen.
Fuji's grandeur must be saved
For when I return one day.

[Please Delete]

Quietly the rain
Hangs in the evening air
Like a feathered scrim;
Its touch upon open skin
Is as soft as morning dew.

-Fujiwara no Shosho

[Deleted]

Leaves wet from the rain
make the way slick and slippy.
The carriage falters.
The horses balk and shiver.
Steam rises from the driver.

[Please Delete]

２日

Children are playing
As the scent of roasted meat
Wafts upon the breeze;
Who would expect a party
At the Arai Barrier?

[Deleted]

Today, clean the site
of recreation's summer,
and view the site of
occupation's discontent.
Proverbial hourglass!

[Please Delete]

Trying this in Japanese, which likely means I failed with the older conjugations, but this was inspired looking out at the morning fog laying over the city as the sun rose.

合わせての
　かさねの色目
　　はままつて
朝のつゆにて
　袖をぬりけり

Awase te no
Kasane no irome
Hamamatsu de
Asa no tsuyu ni te
Sode nuri mi ari

The layered colors
Are well-coordinated
At Hamamatsu;
The sleeves appear to have been
Dampened by the morning dew.

(Translation is approximate to meet the meter)

[Saionji Shonagon]

Her words transport me
Back from the darkened cabin
To shrines and gardens.
Amidst sleeping passengers
Sei whispers to me alone.

[tanuki]

came up with this this morning:

the cat is hungry
he always craves attention
he can't get enough
the half-pint, she cares for him
they are inseparable

[Deleted]

Starting from nothing,
One needs little to avoid
Looking like a bum.
Going from presentable
To fancy costs dearly, though.

[tanuki]

The half-pint is kind
At three she knows "thank you"
'That's impossible!'
I hear you say, but it's true
She's been saying it since two

[Saionji Shonagon]

11/3/14

Where did the day go?
Laundry and groceries should
Not have stolen hours.
Now I take back a moment
As night washes the cold sky.

[Deleted]

The guild masters say,
"We must have a new workshop!"
And though they promise
Much improvement in our lives,
The blessings are not well said.

[Please Delete]

4日

My feelings are mixed
As I return to a home
That was never mine;
I pray that I am worthy
Of these borrowed ancestors.

I visited Iinoya, today, where the Ii family arose from the Northern Fujiwara in the 11th century.

[tanuki]

Simple rectangles
Stupid simple rectangles
No gores, curves, slashes
Just more simple rectangles
Turn simple to elegance