Haibun - is a Japanese form of miniature literature that combines prose with haikus
and is focused on a journey. So I immediately thought about a recent trip to Japan
empty
branches stir
the
castle immovable
both
dark against sky
We leave the castle park and cross
the city, knowing what is to come. People dash past us, heads down,
not thinking of the history, hurrying home out of the harsh wind. On
the surface, a modern city like any other. Concrete canyons rise up:
but once this was an ancient neighbourhood of teak and paper filled
with people just starting out on that bright summer morning. Perhaps
they paused, looked up, hearing a single airplane's drone. Just the
streets remain from that time, rubble filled then, spotless now,
product of a tidy nation: we follow them as light fades. A few more
turnings, and we approach ground zero. Ahead, the A-bomb building
still stands, a reproach to us all for ever.
dull
winter skies –
shadows
on the wall
linger
all these years
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