April WAS National Poetry Month

   I've a confession to make.  I have been neglecting my blog of late, but not my writing.  In the past six months or so I have become more and more interested in poetry.  And since April is National Poetry Month, I have been squirreled away in my poetry cave scribbling verse.  It has become a minor obsession and I can't curb my appetite for it.

  I have fallen in love with the Japanese poetic forms of haiku, senyru and haiga and am now in the habit of writing several every day.  I especially enjoy composing and producing the haiga, using my photographs whenever they suit the poem.

  I have discovered that this type of writing is a very relaxing and contemplative exercise for me.  It forces me to  carefully notice my surroundings and to use language to try to convey a feeling without mentioning the feeling.  I am also taken with the potential for writing a multi-layered poem with several meanings within the narrow parameters of haiku.

  Along the way, I have discovered a number of poets with blogs who post haiku and other poetry on a daily basis.  Many of my favorites are listed on my blog roll to the right of my page under the title 'Feeding the Poet' Check them out!

  Haiku is not for everyone though, as a few people have mentioned to me, privately when I posted it here in the past.   So I am in the process of deciding whether or not to post my work here or perhaps find it a home elsewhere. What say you readers?

  Here is a haiga I created after spending quite some time early this morning trying to get a perfect photo that would show just how gloriously beautiful my weeping cherry is.  It has been in bloom for about a week now and the color has changed from  its original baby pink to a luminous silver.  If the rain holds off for a while, the blossoms will last and eventually become snow white, at which time they will shower us with a spring snow storm.

©Barbara Kaufmann

  I saw the bee but did not capture it in the photo.  And  I'm not sure whether the poem refers to the bee or the poet being intoxicated by the beauty of the blossoms! 

 So here's a short list of what poetry means to me in terms of my health and well-being. 

---- It lowers stress because of the meditative state I find myself in. 

---- It encourages me to exercise since much of my motivation comes from nature.  

----It is very spiritual and contemplative and I often write about God's creation.  

----It challenges me to continue to use my intelligence, my language and my senses. 

---- It can be combined with my other passion, photography, for some interesting effects. 

----I love it.