with a nod
to their name
whilst I was away
the spider plants were joined
by a cobweb
Skylark, 1:1, Summer 2013
Helen Buckingham
Chinese Translation (Traditional)
當我離開時
對他們的名字
點頭示意
蜘蛛網
連接這些吊蘭
Chinese Translation (Simplified)
当我离开时
对他们的名字
点头示意
蜘蛛网
连接这些吊兰
Bio Sketch
Helen
Buckingham has been writing tanka for the past decade or so and in 2011
had a collection published with (and by) Angela Leuck, titled Little Purple Universes. In the same year she brought out a solo collection: Armadillo Basket (Waterloo Press) encompassing a number of styles, western and Japanese, including tanka.
Helen effectively employs the literary technique of word play (spider/cobweb) to convey a sense of amusement. And the closing image tells the reader something about the speaker's personality/character
ReplyDeleteNote: the spider plant is a plant of the lily family that has long narrow leaves with a central yellow or white stripe, native to southern Africa and "popular as a houseplant."