Tuesday, September 5, 2017

One Man's Maple Moon: Sunflower Tanka by Brian Zimmer

English Original

a sunflower
as tall as I am
lays his head on my shoulder
for a moment
as I pass

Spring's First Caress, 2015

Brian Zimmer


Chinese Translation (Traditional)

向日葵
跟我一樣高
當我經過時
它把頭放在我的肩上
一會兒

Chinese Translation (Simplified)

向日葵
跟我一样高
当我经过时
它把头放在我的肩上
一会儿


Bio Sketch

Brian Zimmer wrote from the banks of the Mississippi River in St. Louis, Missouri. His work had appeared in various international print and online journals. He took inspiration from a variety of sources, including the ancient Japanese poetic-diary (utanikki) and free-form, poetic "essay" (zuihitsu).

1 comment:

  1. In Ls 1&2, Brian establishes a relationship between a symbolically rich flower, sunflower, and the speaker, while in Ls 3-5 a sense of restfulness and comfort is effectively conveyed. Brian's shasei (sketch from life) tanka is tightly structured with an emotional undercurrent. And evaluated in the context of jisei (death poem), L5 successfully carries thematic and symbolic significance through an impactful verb, "pass."

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