perfect spot

a hummingbird nests,
tucked safely under the eave --
spring is near

haiku in haiku

One morning on our way to Kahului by car, a big vibrant rainbow appeared off to the right, then it split into a double rainbow, and as we drove, we passed between the two arcs. I didn't have my camera but I did have my notebook...

tropical highway
bends between surreal rainbows
sacred mountain breathes

japanese moment

With dewdrops dripping
I wish somehow I could wash
this perishing world

[Basho]

Today this haiku from Basho moved me. It seems that working with the soil, growing a beautiful Japanese eggplant is a way to "wash this perishing world." A concrete action to reconnect and to cultivate a caring mind. Shining purple blossom with proud yellow center, dark stems against lush green... even before the fruit arrives, it is a wonder to behold.

Haiku Saturday

how reluctantly
the bee emerges from deep
within the peony

[Basho]

Haiku Saturday

droplet on bare branch
reflecting upside-down world
seeking solid ground

Haiku Saturday

I drop my secrets,
treasured stones, into your pond.
They cast no ripples.

[Gabrielle]

Haiku Saturday

wild desert party
swirling sand and burning man
free to be, just be

Haiku Saturday

gingerly he climbs
fruit falls into her open hand
papaya delight

Haiku Saturday

eager bee explores
flowerless curly green edge--
curiosity.

Regenerative and peaceful, new world order

Today we participated in the repair of a very special poetry bench where people gather in Balboa Park on the first Sunday of each month at noon to read poetry aloud in community. Architect Candy Vanderhoff is the inspiration behind the clay plaster bench installation, and she has committed to teaching workshops on natural building, and planning rainwater and greywater collection systems until we all have the skills we need to live in rhythm with our precious planet.

I shared the Rumi poem that is guiding me through 2010:


Birdsong brings relief
to my longing.

I am just as ecstatic as they are,
but with nothing to say!

Please, universal soul, practice
some song, or something, through me!


If you live in San Diego, Candy of RainThanks is teaching a greywater workshop on January 30 or 31, and you can help build a schoolyard pizza oven on February 6 and 7. The oven will be used by school age students to bake vegetables from their garden and bread made from their wheat field.