CONDOLENCE MARE

FOR Mareng NELIA DE GUZMAN

(Condolence to her family and loved ones)

     autumn advent

     the last remaining leaf

     falls down from the tree

     on the gentle prodding

     of Santa Ana wind

     in unison we join

     our collective prayers

     for the eternal repose

     of her soul, mercifully now

     in a pain-free world

     from Pareng Vic Gendrano

     9 November 2015

On the passing today of Nelia de Guzman, the mother-in-law of my daughter Juliet.

Death in the family

the autumn wind
scatters the dried leaves
in the family photo
his face is gradually
and slowly fading

from my book,
Haiku and Tanka Harvest

Brother's death

an old leaf falls

on the gentle prodding

of the autumn wind

unexpected news 

of my brother's death

Obituary

humming their love song

she scans the obituary

once more

Full moon

full moon

and empty arms

oh it's so hard

to fill the void

you left behind

Full moon

full moon and empty arms

so hard to fill the void

she left behind

(another full moon variation)

I shadow 

my shadow

to her grave

From my book, Haiku and Tanka Harvest

https://www.createspace.com/3737478

Fleeting life

I know now

why our embrace

was so tight

your last farewell

to fleeting life

Sketchbook, Vol. 6, No. 1

Jan/Feb. 2011

Wife's death

brisk breeze blasts
the last remaining leaf
this blustery day
his wife of many years
has gone to rest
                    For Darrell

Modern English Tanka
Vol. 2, NO. 2. Winter 2007

In memoriam

To Svetlana,

a shooting star streaks
to its blazing glory
Eden lost to Paradise

On the recent death of fellow poet Svetlana Marisova. May she rest in peace...

Feeling alone

often
I feel alone
amidst a crowd
still hard to fill the void
you left behind

Sketchbook, Vol. 5, No. 4
July/August 2010

Missing stone ring

This sijo poem is a work in progress, my first revision, what do you think?


my granddaughter lately asks me
of the missing stone in my ring

as she lovingly caresses
my gnarled and wrinkled fingers

hugging her tightly I whispered
I lost it in your grandma's grave

Mother's day (once more)

my daughter
invites me to lunch
this Mother's day
just for a tender moment
she's her late mother

In my book, Rustle of bamboo leaves
but originally published in World Haiku Review
Vol. 5, Issue 1, Spring/Summer 2005

Sister's death

spring cleanup
last letter of my sister
before her death

For my sister Ate Nena,
who passed away last year

All Souls Day

their room
fills with silence
this All Souls day
even her unrocking
rocking chair

I know now
why our embrace
was so tight
your last farewell
to fleeting life

For K. Malden and the three others before him

a series of shocks
rocks Tinsel town, death again
of another one

Mother's day

mulling beside
her empty chair
Mother's day

Death of a friend

no bees or butterflies hover
on her orchids garden
in the silence of this gloomy day
they also mourn the death
of their green-thumbed owner

ALONENESS

Dry leaves
smother the bench
where we used to daydream
and watch the waning sun give way
to night.
Alone,
I try to resurrect those days
which seem eternal spring.
But winter's here
again.


Reader's comments:

This mirror cinquain (2 4 6 8 2 2 8 6 4 2) creates an almost overwhelming sense of isolation. The image of "Dry leaves / smother" ing is a dominant image in the first verse; followed by the image of the "waning sun" are two well juxtaposed images that establish the theme of passing--the passing of natural objects and the passing of human relationships--the daydreams and a spouse who is now absent. In the second verse "resurrect" confirms the images of dying in verse 1, and juxtaposed with "eternal spring" and the arrival of "winter . . . again" intensifies the feeling expressed in the title. The expert selection of words to convey an image and a feeling is illustrated in these words: "smother", "used to daydream", "waning / to night", "resurrect" / "eternal spring", and "winter". "Aloneness" is a well crafted cinquain.