summer breeze
lifts a corner
of our picnic blanket --
I place a grape
on your outstretched tongue
Winner, 2002 Tanka Splendor Awards
Michael Dylan Welch
Chinese Translation (Traditional)
夏日微風
掀起我們野餐毯子
的一角 --
我放了一顆葡萄
在你伸出的舌頭上
Chinese Translation (Simplified)
夏日微风
掀起我们野餐毯子
的一角 --
我放了一颗葡萄
在你伸出的舌头上
Bio Sketch
Michael
Dylan Welch is vice president of the Haiku Society of America, founder
of the Tanka Society of America (2000), and cofounder of Haiku North
America conference (1991) and the American Haiku Archives (1996). In
2010 he also started National Haiku Writing Month (NaHaiWriMo), which
takes place every February, with an active Facebook page. His personal
website is www.graceguts.com, which features hundreds of essays,
reviews, reports, and other content, including examples of his published
poetry.
This tanka is playfully erotic. Just as the speaker in the poem is enjoying the sensuality of placing a grape on a lover’s outstretched tongue, the picnic basket appears to be enjoying the sensual play of the summer wind.
ReplyDelete-- excerpted from the judge's commentary, accessed at https://www.ahapoetry.com/ts2002.htm