“The Ending,” A Tanka & A Senryu

Posted byColleen M. ChesebroPosted inTanka Tuesday Poetry ChallengesTags:, , , , ,

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Thanks for stopping by to check out my Weekly Poetry Challenge where we can write a Haiku, Tanka, Haibun, Cinquain, or a Senryu using the prompt words: mist and shape. To keep things interesting, I kept the word mist but used silhouettes for the word shape.

Forms blending as one

figures outlined in gray mist,

silhouettes shrouded.

Profiles in passion adrift,

contours of a broken heart.

©2017 Colleen M. Chesebro

I can create a Senryu by using synonyms. This time, I used “opaque” for misty, and “manipulation” for the word, shape. The Senryu instructions say to share a personal event. In my poetry, the irony is that the relationship was all about manipulation, not love as the first two lines suggest. Does that make sense?

Here is how I am viewing a Haiku – write about nature. When you write a Senryu, you are writing about love or human emotions with a touch of humor or irony present.

Opaque memories –

Fused in my heart forever,

Manipulation.

©2017 Colleen M. Chesebro

Published by Colleen M. Chesebro

An avid reader, Colleen M. Chesebro rekindled her love of writing poetry after years spent working in the accounting industry. These days, she loves crafting syllabic poetry, flash fiction, and creative fiction and nonfiction. In addition to poetry books, Chesebro’s publishing career includes participation in various anthologies featuring short stories, flash fiction, and poetry. She’s an avid supporter of her writing community on Word Craft Poetry.com by organizing and sponsoring a weekly syllabic poetry challenge, called #TankaTuesday, where participants experiment with traditional and current forms of Japanese and American syllabic poetry. Chesebro is an assistant editor of The Congress of the Rough Writers Flash Fiction Anthology & Gitty Up Press, a micro-press founded by Charli Mills and Carrot Ranch. In January 2022, Colleen founded Unicorn Cats Publishing Services to assist poets and authors in creating eBooks and print books for publication. In addition, she creates affordable book covers for Kindle and print books. Chesebro lives in the house of her dreams in mid-Michigan surrounded by the Great Lakes with her husband and two (unicorn) cats, Chloe & Sophie.

58 thoughts on ““The Ending,” A Tanka & A Senryu”

    1. Thanks, Merril. I struggled with the word misty. The synonyms were fun to play with for both words.

      Liked by 1 person

    1. Thanks, Miriam. I encourage the use of synonyms because it can change the meaning of your poetry in an instant. 😀 ❤

      Liked by 1 person

                    2. I remember a Japanese teacher teaching Cinquain to her 2nd grade class. She teaches Haiku also. I taught my classes how to count syllables by counting the vowels. Actually counting syllables is part of the on-going learning well into 4th grade.

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                    3. I loved creative writing and poetry in school and college. The Japanese forms have always appealed to me. I did accounting for years as a bookkeeper. I think it is the order and the rules that I like. LOL! Cinquain is fun for adults because they have to think about the directions – kids too! 😀

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                    4. I enjoy organization. So after teaching for 18 years, I got to do school administration for 10 years before I retired. My sisters and my daughter are good in organization also – special thing about girls in our family. I did two or three Villanette and one Pantoum. They are highly structured poem forms. I enjoyed doing those also. This is my second year taking poetry at OLLI (Osher Lifelong Learning Institute), a program for the retirees held at State Univs in 26 (?) states. The class members mostly write free verse!

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                    5. I would love for to do a guest post on my blog about some of these advanced poem forms. The Villanelle and Pantoum forms are fascinating. I love poetry. ❤

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                    6. Yes, my daughter ha all the nurser rhymes memorized. She is not writing poems ar this time. When she post her photography on social media and make comments, it does show her poetic expressions. I sing. The classical lyrics are very poetic.

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    1. Aren’t these poetry challenges fun? I’ve really enjoyed them. Hugs to you, Viva. ❤

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  11. I can see the irony here. Great choice of words in this sense: contour, figures outlined. mist… silhouettes. Most times, appearances deceive us… Quite funny that we need to go through it all to finally acknowledge it 😉 Love & best wishes dear Colleen! 🙂

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Thank you! I chose the words carefully to convey that message. Perception is interesting and part of human nature. Many times we only see what we want to see, not the truth. ❤ Hugs, dear friend. ❤

      Liked by 1 person

  12. Pingback: Colleen’s Weekly Poetry Tuesday Challenge No. 54: GHOST & HAUNT – ✨Colleen Chesebro✨The Fairy Whisperer ✨

          2. The annoying thing is unless I check back to see if my comments have been delivered, via a page refresh I am non the wiser., Apparently other folk are having the same problem!

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      1. Hey I wasn’t cating aspirations, I was referring to the mist hiding dangers! Perhaps I better look at the wording ii it can be taking that way.?

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