- Tanka
- is
- intended
- to
- evoke
- a
- moment,
- meaning
- a
- feeling,
- an
- emotion,
- a
- scene,
- etc.,
- to
- allow
- the
- reader
- to
- experience
- the
- moment
- with
- precision.
- Tanka
- in
- the
- English
- language
- has
- taken
- on
- a
- character
- of
- its
- own,
- with
- most
- English
- language
- composers
- keeping
- the
- original
- five
- line
- form,
- but
- opting
- to
- for
- a
- freer
- and
- flowing
- form
- that
- pays
- no
- heed
- to
- syllable
- count.
- I
- have
- found
- the
- strict
- syllable
- count
- to
- be
- both
- a
- challenge
- and
- a
- blessing.
- A
- challenge
- in
- that
- I
- am
- forced
- to
- exercise
- considerable
- discipline
- to
- convey
- my
- message,
- describe
- my
- moment,
- or
- communicate
- the
- feeling
- I
- want
- the
- reader
- to
- feel.
- A
- blessing
- because
- I
- tend
- to
- be
- entirely
- too
- wordy.
- When
- I
- am
- writing
- free
- verse,
- my
- most
- common
- editing
- task
- involves
- wholesale
- deletions
- to
- keep
- to
- the
- point
- without
- belaboring
- it.
This
- collection
- is
- a
- simple
- chronological
- presentation
- of
- tanka
- I
- have
- written,
- starting
- with
- January
- 1,
- 2014,
- and
- going
- through
- September
- 15,
- 2014…mostly
- because
- that
- is
- the
- date
- I
- decided
- to
- get
- off
- my
- rear
- and
- make
- this
- book
- happen.
Fair
- warning,
- some
- these
- are
- nature
- related,
- some
- about
- fanciful
- subjects,
- and
- a
- few
- are
- unabashedly
- religious.
- If
- any
- of
- them
- offend
- you,
- please
- just
- pass
- them
- by
- and
- if
- you
- feel
- strongly
- enough
- about
- it,
- fire
- off
- an
- e-mail.
- I
- promise
- that
- I
- will
- read
- and
- consider
- what
- you
- say.
- Which
- is
- the
- only
- promise
- I
- will
- make.
- I
- strive
- to
- keep
- my
- tone
- uplifting,
- and
- never
- use
- profane
- or
- crude
- language.
- I
- compose
- and
- post
- my
- tanka
- on
- Facebook,
- where
- my
- daughter
- can
- and
- does
- read
- them.
- When
- I
- hear
- my
- words
- coming
- out
- of
- her
- mouth,
- I
- do
- not
- want
- to
- be
- regretting
- what
- I said!
pro-mbooks3 : libris
