These are tanka I wrote several years ago. They were published on "The Anglo-Japanese Society" website which is no longer accessible.
with the moon
against the darkness
I start out small
in just a sliver
of canoe
lost streets
that twist without reason
except to hold
the shadows
of other people's stories
in the anatomy
of a gray feather
barely a spine--
is that all it takes
to travel so lightly
this morning the river
carries the news before
I can write it down
three deer are swimming
towards me
buried in hands
a face tired
of holding itself up
I know not if this church
is for prayer or sorrow
