A book of 25 beautiful Tanka poems from John[Jack]Byrne.....an Irish poet.... adrift on an Ocean of poems...join him as he sets sail for your heart with a cargo of Tanka...that exquisite five line ancient poetry
TRANSCRIPT
A Tanka Journey
John {Jack} Byrne
Welcome to tanka poetry which originated inJapan more than 13 centuries ago, a poemwritten of love or self reflection, they do notrhyme and are written in 5 short lines of 31syllables {5/7/5/7/7}or less, and is bestwritten with a pivot which changes the toneof the poem, join me on this poetic journey John{Jack}Byrne
All poems within are the work of John{Jack}Byrne and should not used without the authors permission 2015
from the harbourgreat ships carry people away…when will I see onebring you back to me
sadnessin the curlew’s crythis grey day…his lonelinessthe same as mine
the starshow wonderful and bright they shine…this night you have promised to love me
this Christmasthe snow fallsmore silent than before…it knowshow I pine for you
unkind wordsexchanged over breakfastleaving me withmore of a mess to tidy this morning
almost a year nowsince she leftsearching for the young manwhom I was
I awake to birdsongyour gentle breathrising and fallingyour face contentfrom last night’s love
molly my catsquints in my directionwith affection…blackbirdsplay into Spring
heavy snowfallin the nighthas secretlystolen Springand all she offered
under the bridgethe river flows fastaided by the rain…a broken heartaids my tears
third visitwalkingthrough the ward doorshe asks againwho am I
at breakfasta sparkle in your eyesa promissory noteof what lies ahead
year of the snakecould have a morepleasant start…is there an antidotefor mankind’s venom ?
Irelandwhere moonbeamsand lover’s kissesare often stored within the hedgerows
summer cloudskiss the mountain topspilling dreams…pleasing my heartin the valley below
happiness is a roseborn on a stemof love…how pleasingthis scent of you
whiskeyalready belowthe mark…how to tell herit’s over
once I travelledthe carefree path of a young boy…but tread carefulon this adult road
brent geesegather in the fieldto graze and chatter…what do they knowof loneliness
watching the sunsetpull this dayto a close…are there morewords to say?
during my strolla soft mist cools my facelike a velvet glove…my thoughts of youthis Irish morning
relaxing musicfill my earswhile songs of the violinswisk me alofton the wings of angels
I have little fearof fallingon this uneven groundprovidedI fall to your heart
silent as the owlshe brings her love to methis Irish colleenon soft wingsshe flies to my heart
autumnthe swallows have leftto journey south…again you leave menothing but loneliness
I’m afraid we’ve reached the end of our firststep in this great tanka journey, but I’mjust mooring for the night in the harbourof dreams, here I will dream my dreams oflove, and awake refreshed ready to embarkon the ocean of poems and our tanka journey.