Light & Air (collaboration)

fear waits staccato
my sunken chest rises sharp
the clouded breath wafts 
accosted by frigid air
reaching through the cracked window

soft belly
rises and falls
eyes closed
I pay attention
to my connection

timeless tradition
breeding safely within kin
unfettered I fly
my permeable will flows
one with the hidden senses

an empath
hypersensitive skin
inherited
yet, I remain here
sponge like absorbing

my delicate touch
raps upon the spectral shield
ethereal lights
guide haunting journeys beyond
parallel and united

no need
for anything more
why go on
let me die here
under your magical spell

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Collaboration with Genie Nakano.

My tanka are on the left, Genie, in italics on the right.

Genie Nakano lives in Gardena, CA, where she teaches yoga and tanka at the Japanese Cultural Center of Gardena. She has a regular column for the Rafu Shimpo where she shares her tanka and short stories. She wrote three books of tanka available on Amazon.Com and can be reached at GenieYogini@yahoo.com.

You can find other works by Genie at her blog genienakano.com

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