Autumn tanka(waka) challenge

[Saionji Shonagon]

In quiet chambers
I gazed upon images
Writ in silk and gold.
A world away, a city
Bled and weeps for her fallen.

[Deleted]

Astride favored mount,
rider rises to let leaps
and canters take their
course until summit is gained.
Fall air fades the ride's soft glow.

[Kagami Tomoko]

11.13.15

These tears freely fall
Like leaves on an autumn breeze
How fragile we are
With uncertain tomorrows
Paris Mon Coeur tend la main.

[Ki no Kotori]

11.11.15

Peek beyond the blinds
The warriors ride to battle
In far provinces
To fight in dire conflict
While we rest here at our ease

11.12.15

Fly, o maple leaf!
May the swift winds carry you
O'er many a mile
Convey my warmest wishes
For friendship knows no distance

11.13.15

I cried when I heard
The tales of the bloodshed
On the evening news
For I remember Paris
From my childhood days

11.14.15

I pick up my brush
And let the ink flow freely
Order from chaos
The maple leaves rustle in
Harmony with the wind chimes

[Saionji Shonagon]

I wait with my sword
For a turn with some stranger
In a too-small room.
Some fall to my humble skills,
Each one gives me new lessons.

[Deleted]

This has always been
the way things simply are, the
weather can turn and
take the lives of innocents,
but why must we be weather?

[Saionji Shonagon]

A sheaf of bright leaves
Bound simply with silken thread
Cause the heart to leap.
A hand reaches in friendship
Across untold miles to me.

Thank you, Ki-hime.

[Ki no Kotori]

I asked Grandmother
What do you do when death is
Knocking at your door?
Live life, she said, live it well
Treasure these precious moments

[Deleted]

One carriage misplaced.
Hundreds wait for clear passage.
Thousands of lungs sigh.
Lifetimes pass behind windows.
Cold winds blow. Wet turns to ice.

[Ki no Kotori]

A sing-song meow
The patter of little paws
Three AM wake-up
Tonight, in this silent house
Your absence is truly felt

[akikonomu]

A thin haze of frost
glazes the green blades of grass
in the predawn hours.
Under the yellow street lamps,
grass sparkles, echoing stars.

[Saionji Shonagon]

Chill winds off the bay
Rattle windows in their frames
And sway the treetops.
Inside the house I shiver
And unfold one more blanket.

[Deleted]

This goes over there,
and that goes over to here.
Everything displaced
for now, and further later.
Until the move, much chaos.

[Ki no Kotori]

Sleepless with worry
I stitch these words together
A drunken seamstress
My empty arms are crying
For my little one's return

[Saionji Shonagon]

Travel takes its toll
On mind and body alike:
I cannot resist.
It will be an early night
With a soothing cup of tea.