Ro
When this note fades
will it join you in that place
above the sky
or below the waves
of the earth’s plump
body? Or will it
circle back, returning to
my lips and this
hollow day
to aspire again?
Note: Ro designates the fingering required to produce a particular note on the shakuhachi, the traditional Japanese bamboo flute. In this case, closing all holes.
O at the Edges 
Your words resonate a serene tune, And I see the corner of your book has snuck into your header photo.
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Thanks, Ivor. That book is rather sneaky!
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Yes, it sneakily made it’s way to Australia.
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Books lead such interesting lives…
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Once they escape the clutches of the Librarians, they’re free to roam the wilds of the world.
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They certainly travel more than I!
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Ro will lead to Robert.
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Ha! I hadn’t thought of that. 😀
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Intriguing question … for a note played, word spoken, … perhaps even written on pages or online? Sweet to think of notes, words moving along a circular path back to source … to renewal …
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I hope it applies to all forms of communication…
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We recently lost a relative named Yamada, so I was especially moved by the photo and poem.
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Thanks very much!
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Wow! Just wow!
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Thank you.
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you love blowing ro too? 🙂
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I must admit that ro sometimes emerge as a sputter…
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once I acclimate, for me it is the easiest and most booming tone. I get into trouble with the higher ones.
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I love the tone. My shakuhachi has a wide bore, and offers much depth, but it also requires more wind.
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Beyond the note and its action, the subtle placement of the people in this poem make it truly exquisite, to me: the loved one “in that place/ above the sky/ or . . .” and the narrator whose day is “hollow” but possibly hopeful (the note may “aspire again” ). Bravo, again!
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Thank you, Peri. Those silences between lines and notes…
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This was a great read, thanks for sharing.
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I’m so pleased you found it so. Thank you.
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Bittersweet question … in some ways the $64K one! Well put, too …
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Thanks very much, Dave. Bittersweet, yet…
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How can a poem simultaneously fill and break one’s heart? Well done!
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Ah, thanks, Jillane. It’s all about wind and silence. Wind and silence.
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This takes me in the direction of the ebb and flow of relationships. Nicely written!
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Thank you, Susi. The questions, the return, the possibilities…
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… the hope. 🙂 You’re welcome!
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Captured: the still motion of life’s essence. Lovely. I love how there’s a possibility of unpacking so much more than just the surface fact and metaphor. Thank you.
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Thanks for reading this, M.T. Much appreciated!
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We seem to have some cultural harmonies, at least in worldview. I find I understand your work better than many other poets I’ve read. Thank you for being you. Thank you for writing.
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Yes, it seems we do! Tho I must admit that I’ve never been a big fan of mochi. Ha! I look forward to reading more of your work.
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I am not ethnically anything, but raised in the region during a most developmentally defining period in my life. My ‘normal’ worldview is strongly not European-influenced North American (but very strongly indigenous North American & highly animist – so with a similarity to pre-Meiji era Shintoism & Korean Muist world understanding – both of which harmonize beautifully with my Maternal Grandfather’s Medicine Teachings for me.) I hope I am not offensive to you. My spirit distills all I have learned into my words. And I talk too much. Thank you for your kindness in this communication with me.
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You are most definitely not offensive to me! Animism and Shintoism fascinate me, as does much else. Please feel free to talk too much here! 🙂
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Deep gratitude & respect, sir. (Scuttling off to hide for a bit.)
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And back at you.
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