Too Precious Not to Pick

BAMBOO
—Ryokan

The thick bamboo grove near my hut
Keeps me nice and cool.
Shoots proliferate, blocking the path,
While old branches reach for the sky.
Years of frost give bamboo spirit;
They are most mysterious when wrapped in mist.
Bamboo is as hardy as pine and oak,
And more subtle than peach or plum blossoms.
It grows straight and tall,
Empty inside but with a sturdy root.
I love the purity and honesty of my bamboo,
And want them to thrive here always!

_______________________

Wild peonies
Now at their peak
In glorious full bloom:
Too precious to pick,
Too precious not to pick.

O lonely pine!
I'd gladly give you
My straw hat and
Thatches coat
To ward off the rain.

—Ryokan
_______________________

How can I possibly sleep
This moonlit evening?
Come, my friends,
Let's sing and dance
All night long.

Stretched out,
Tipsy,
Under the vast sky:
Splendid dreams
Beneath the cherry blossoms.

Wild roses,
Plucked from fields,
Full of croaking frogs:
Float them in your wine
And enjoy every minute!

—Ryokan
________________________

SUMMER EVENING
—Ryokan

The night advances toward dawn,
Dew drips from the bamboo onto my brushwood gate.
My neighbor to the west has stopped pounding his mortar;
My little hermit's garden grows moist.
Frogs croak near and far,
Fireflies flit high and low.
Wide awake, it's not possible to sleep tonight.
I smooth my pillow and let my thoughts drift.

_____________________________

Still going on:

•••The 72-hour Java City Poetry Marathon continues through today (Sun.) at Java City, 18th & Capitol, Sac., ending at noon on Monday, July 31.

•••There will be no Sacramento Poetry Center reading this Monday (7/31).

There is the still time

(well, barely) to enter Bright Hill Press's 12th Annual Poetry Chapbook Competition; the postmark deadline is Monday, July 31, 2006. Complete guidelines for the competition may be found at www.brighthillpress.org/brighthillbooks/brighthillpoetrybookchapbooksubmissionguidelines.html. Info: BHP at 607-829-5055 or e-mail wordthur@stny.rr.com. [Sorry for the late notice; I just got this and figured you might still want to give it a shot.]

_______________________

Spring rains,
Summer showers,
A dry autumn:
May nature smile on us
And we all will share in the bounty.

Please don't mistake me
For a bird
When I swoop
Into your garden
To eat the cherry apples.

I went there
To beg rice
But the blooming bush clover
Among the stones
Made me forget the reason.

(Today's poetry is from Dewdrops on a Lotus Leaf: Zen Poems of Ryokan, trans. by John Stevens)

—Medusa

Medusa encourages poets of all ilk and ages to send their poetry and announcements of Northern California poetry events to kathykieth@hotmail.com for posting on this daily Snake blog. Rights remain with the poets. Previously-published poems are okay for Medusa’s Kitchen, as long as you own the rights. (Please cite publication.)