Zazen – on the farm in Hampshire

a memory evening

forgotten in the sunset

burnishes copper kettles

holding linen gloves

performing léger de main

with destiny’s child

hidden pathways unwind

each nascent moment

ever pregnant pauses

judge and jury mind

hears not the birdsong

resenting coming dawns

a tear meanders lost

on a forsaken face

quenching desert lilies

sandcastle dreams ebb

and flow, with the

incoming tides of life

under the arch’s curve

fate shelters a while

as the earth drinks deep

raindrops softly caress

verdant carpets drawn

on canvas fields

watercolours paint margins

for the Soul to journey

a leather coracle in Dao

the profound silence of ponds

hears water boatmen

tickle trout with song

the winds play flute

a chimney blows smoke rings

beech logs in the fire

cows chanting mantra in sheds

the prayer bell chimes

a farmer brings fresh hay

the kestrel hovers hungry

seeing beyond horizons

keen for future dreams

the woodcutter’s solitude

cuts axe blade sharp

through logs mundane

spiced wine warming

the veins of golden ore

pumped only by heart

the acrobat squirrel

crosses the swaying canyon

between century’s pylons

semaphore trees

waving long naked fingers

in winter’s winds

the point before mind

waits for the ripple of

a passing thought

stardust falls silent

for those who wait

no footprints in the snow

a match scratches a back

a hint of phosphorous

fire eases the itch of cold

moss on the trees

hiding from sunrays

growing only aeon’s beards

the wise old yews

cracking knuckles in the breeze

have watched millennia

the moorhens plink

pennies in a fountain

wishing for luck at dawn

a carrion crow plucks

a hearty breakfast

at the roadside café

omniscience counts

each Autumn leaf

the actuary of Souls

how does dharma teach

the fiery core of stars

only by feathers in the heart

what lies before now

only the present sleeping

waiting for the cockerel

what lies after now

only persistent dawns

irradiated with dew

what lies in the now

only forever born eternal

in the womb of moment

singing songs in the bath

no-one is watching

a child starts to walk

as naked as spring

a flower unfolds its flag

saying only welcome

the candle shimmers

beacons burn on the hills

eyes glisten with living love

an owl hoots in laughter

at man’s busy lives

pondering on their shadows

a spider’s web tense

sees the ants commute

yearning for love

soft down in chestnut shells

beyond fish hook barbs

cradles possibility

red holly berries

write in their font of hope

amidst the thorns

wide empty paths

leading to the cosmic causeway

where bamboo bridges flex

the Dao bends the reed

to fit the clarinet

and Gabriel’s oboe

Dao tunes pianos

in the darkness of night

a quintessence is born

a river carves Souls

whilst brooks chuckle softly

over the mossy rocks

mayflies tickle the eddies

willows bowing humble

under azure skies

scent carries fragrance

of lotus blossom

cherishing tender Sakurai

a single petal floats

wafted on pillow dreams

cotton wool soothes with a tincture

cutting carrots fine

a sliver of perfection

crisp and juicy with joy

sliced ginger pervades

more pungent than any dawn

a newborn deer forages

Fog “Haiku”

dripping with silence

the fog embraces

a vellum envelope

no breath breathing

a distillation of dew

way before its dawn

the spectre of a barn

hidden coyly

beyond a misty fig leaf

wet blotting papers

with no ink of sun

to irradiate diamonds

cling like chewing gum

to the damp

pavement of the day

soon the Tenebrae

of dusk, will tip toe,

up the green carpet

this sceptered isle

will lay its head

on pillow down

the fog will give

of its febrile feathers

to comfort in sleep.

Cooking “Haiku”

it is snowing outside

peeling sprouts,

the layers of a season

bashful potatoes blush.

their red faces

surrender to nakedness

twelve sausages

now in a pan

oiled with summer’s scent

these slippery elvers

flow over the weir.

an olive branch bows

the world needs

an ointment, a salve

something virgin, and new

soon they will marry

the butters, now churned

with a little pepper

peasant fare

on a winter’s night

a sample of, the simple

the log store

understands emptiness

and so replenishes

now for some fire

to make a meal

handsome out of it

the alchemist stirs

and out the cauldron

there is food!!

Forest “Haiku”

take off your shoes

stretch out toes

arching the foot

now step into verdant

on soft wet earth

and, tickling leaves

run fingers in ferns

the exquisite fronds

each, an eternity, making

the pungent evergreen

still, pining for a lover

in a scented envelope

a gnarled old oak

staunch and dependable

waits table, upon spring

he serves up only

finest bluebell champagne,

no more need of ice

the tapestry spiders

have been busy

catching tears in their gloves

the armoured holly

pierces a red blood sky

burying the past

the filigree ivy

relaxes and unwinds,

a cobra salutes the sun

no hot red coals

but soft green needles

soothing only, naked feet

the trees huddle so close

and bend to hug

they love a weary pilgrim

they offer a salve

and a nectar,

he drinks with desert thirst

such an ointment this

it soothes and balms,

a gurgling brook laughs

the forest is both

a doctor and a nurse

it opens a sacred tincture

the forest spirit

stands in the clearing

and with a twinkle, he smiles

Christmas “Haiku”

angry mother with bags

snaps at her child

Joy to the world!

car park queues

tempers at the ticket machine

Peace on Earth!

old Checkout ladies

looking stressed and tired.

a wink and a flirt brings, smiles

man on a phone

asking wife of her clothes size

no sensible reply

eyes roll upwards

he takes out a pack

lights a cigarette and, exhales

frenzy at the tills

the sharks all circle

a dying whale, who blubbers

a stranger gives to me

a gift from nowhere

more rice in a bowl

running from the madness

beware the police

speed cameras always watch

turning into the lanes

all water and mud

leafy debris, oils a passing

silent peaceful roads,

bare hedgerows

and six rooks sing in a tree!

a glass of wine

a pint of beer

the log fire whistles a little, tunefully

the asylum seems

so madly distant now

a salve of silence, soothes

now only to fill the manger

with a jerked turkey

wearing Scotch bonnets

no bitter Myrrh

for spicy chilli clears all

some warmth in winter

the Atlantic frantic,

feeding frenzy,

breaks upon distant rocks

peace on Earth!

joy to the world!

a warm silence seeps into my veins

Dusk Haiku

pinking the night

down to earth

hush tippy-toes in

the DJ fades out

memory’s slider

no more pencil marks!

obsidian skies

cooling a lava glass

for sparkle stars

ghosts whisper

their ancient stories

scaring the living

beech and birch

whip up flames

in a yawning stove

heat flickers dry

easing the room

all blinds drawn

darkness, at bay

wanders cold

no gap, under the door

Mind “Haiku”

always tomorrow mind

loses today

and does so, forever

self important mind

bigger than eternity

smaller than the void

I am right mind

ticks all the boxes

misses all the circles of life

justification mind

alters paragraphs

to fit prejudice

tight circle mind

obsesses whirlpools

a vortex, of doom

told you so mind

is confident in

its omniscience

busy mind, too full

is blind as bats

and deaf as posts

stress bunny mind

drives a car

like kangaroos

just like this mind

clear as a pond

reflecting truth

point before thought,

has no worries

ever, premature

pure wisdom mind

is mostly silent

and waiting in the forest

simple Dao mind

flows like a brook

an empty Raku bowl

impermanence mind

sees only

coloured sand in the wind

no mind, mind

knows eternity

and offers him only rice

Hiver haiku

Written on physical plane earth date December 2020….amidst the covid 19 plague….

low watercolour sun

shining through ribs

of emaciated trees

the starlings murmur

a flash mob in the sky

dancing Bolero

mistletoe lollipops

standing perfectly still

Coldstream guards

bright turquoise mask

wrapped in plastic

a time of the signs

in places bucolic

have hands washed

quite ethanolic

silver birches

reflecting on the pond

three wise men

Serenity Haiku

a heron stands

one leg in the reeds

he reaches for his oboe

a contented carp

blows bubbles

puckering his lips

a lotus unfolds

her petal wings

butterflies waft incense

a busy dragon-fly

is a rainbow

who caresses time

clear crystal ponds

reflect pure light

whiter than snow

a pendant drop

hangs from the gallows

of a moment

a ripple stretches

across a dewy pond

and yawns sleepily

a reed bends

in the harsh winds

which soon, too will pass

a moorhen dives

hungry for breakfast,

a croissant with butter

the spirit churns

all of the milk

to spread on toast

a hungry falcon

hovers in the wind

seeking a morsel

the rain falls heavy

the ducks rejoice

water off their backs

a Rōnin waits

for he has no master

else his heart

he sits seiza

and watches only walls

for there, is wisdom…