Poetic Musings: Sound of Home Tanka by Chen-ou Liu

a flock of geese

through the shelter window

a deaf veteran

touches again and again

the sound of home

Honorable Mention, Tanka, 2024 San Francisco International Competition

 

Chen-ou Liu

Commentary by the judge: In this tanka, I love the mix of senses, and powerful elements. A "flock of geese" commands our attention even without the rush of sound that is inherent in it. And the lone veteran who sees, cannot hear but "feels" it. The action brings to heart the reasons for the deafness... and separation from the flock... excerpted from the 

FYI: I also won the following tanka awards in the contest:

years in exile ...

moonlight rippling

the Pacific,

this narrow path

to the (M)otherland

First Place, Tanka, 2024 San Francisco International Competition

Thanksgiving moon

sparks on the rippling water

of Lake Ontario ...

from his cupped, calloused hands

a migrant's taste of home

Honorable Mention