The Renhai Pages

Trapped in Loneliness: Renhai No. XXX

by Rita Odeh (ro) and John Daleiden (jd)

the sudden silence
of the caged love bird...
cloudy sky       /ro

a kite trapped in an oak tree—       /jd
the tiny sparrow's song lingers     /ro

at the bistro
she sips wine alone...waiting...
laughter all around       /jd

Archive Id: xxx
John Daleiden: USA
Rita Odeh: Israel
Written: May 7-10, 2012

Theme: Trapped / Entrapment; a secondary and parallel theme of loneliness is associated with the trapped theme.
Season: Spring
Kigo: kite: "tako": Observances: The Haiku Handbook. William J. Higginson with Penny Harter, p. 269.
Verse Form:
Process: Forward: 2A,2B; 1; 3

Links 1 / 2: caged bird / trapped kite; caged bird / free sparrow (b)
Links 2 / 3: kite, bird are alone / the woman is alone
Links 3 / 1: laughter / silence (opposite emotions)

Another Scoop: Renhai No. 20

by John Daleiden (jd) & Vaughn Seward (vs)

An orange crane
lifts immense steel girders—
changing skyline. /jd

A piece of string in the beak— /vs
among tree buds, a new nest. /jd

Backyard sandbox—
the boy's backhoe lifts
another scoop. /vs

in Renhai Studio

Archive Id: 20
John Daleiden: USA
Vaughn Seward: Canada
Written: May 6-8, 2008

Theme: Horizons
Season: Spring (Middle)
Kigo: Tree buds; New nest
Verse Form: Free
Process: Forward

Links 1/2: Crane / Bird; Building / Nest; Macro / Micro
Links 2/3: Nest / Sandbox; Beak / Backhoe
Links 3/1: Crane / Backhoe; Construction site; Human; Child / Adult

Notes: The middle verse of this Renhai inspired two other Renhai by Vaughn and John which formed this triad:

Renhai 20: Another Scoop; Theme: Horizons
Renhai 27: Sringing Things; Theme: Making useful things; String
Renhai 40: Sunrise, Sunset; Theme: Cycle of change in the natural world

Stringing Things: Renhai No. 27

by John Daleiden (jd) & Vaughn Seward (vs)

In the Parlor
women stitch quilt blocks—
the twitter of birds. /jd

A piece of string in the beak— /vs
among tree buds, a new nest. /jd

Babbling brook—
for a fishing pole the boys
find a stick. /vs

in Renhai Studio

Archive Id: 27
John Daleiden: USA
Vaughn Seward: Canada
Written: May 6-8, 2008

Theme: Making useful things; String
Season: Spring (Middle)
Kigo: Tree buds; New nest
Verse Form: Free
Process: Forward

Links 1/2a: Birds.
Links 1/2b: Parlor / Nest.
Links 2a/3: Beak / Fishing pole.
Links 2b/3: Tree / Stick.
Links 3/1: Babbling / Twittering; Boys / Women.

Notes: This Renhai is part of a triad by Vaughn and John that was inspired a common middle verse: Renhai 20: Another Scoop; Theme: Horizons
Renhai 27: Sringing Things; Theme: Making useful things; String: Renhai 40: Sunrise, Sunset: Theme: Cycle of change in the natural world

Spring Essence: Renhai No. 31

by Gillena Cox (gc) & John Daleiden (jd)

Lost, lost! I am lost
in a dark and frightening wood —
full Spring moon tonight. /jd

The problem now resolved— /gc
my soul is up on the roof. /jd

With doubtful mind
timidily raising the lid—
stack of old letters. /gc

in Renhai Studio

Sunrise, Sunset: Renhai No. 40

by Vaughn Seward (vs) & John Daleiden (jd)

Coral ledge—
a seahorse expels babies
from his pouch. /vs

A piece of string in the beak— /vs
among tree buds, a new nest. /jd

In the garden rocks
a snake waits for prey—
sunrise, sunset. /jd

in Renhai Studio

Archive Id: 40
Vaughn Seward: Canada
John Daleiden: USA
Written: May 8-14, 2008

Theme: Cycle of change in the natural world
Season: Spring (Middle)
Kigo: New nest
Verse Form: Free
Process: Forward

Links 1/2a: Pouch / Beak.
Links 1/2b: Buds / Babies.
Links 2a/3: String / Snake
Links 2b/3: Nest / Garden rocks.
Links 3/1: Rocks / Coral Ledge.

Notes: This Renhai is part of a triad by Vaughn and John that was inspired by a common middle verse:Renhai 20: Another Scoop; Theme: Horizons
Renhai 27: Sringing Things; Theme: Making useful things; String
Renhai 40: Sunrise, Sunset; Theme: Cycle of change in the natural world

A Tie That Binds: Solo Renhai No. 43

by John Daleiden

telephone booth
dialing long distance to reach
your distant heart

in your burnished treasure chest
our tattered love letters

my photograph
in your gold locket
precious memories

in Renhai Studio

Archive Id: 43
John Daleiden: USA
Written: May 14-16, 2008

Theme: Love Remaining Ardent Despite Distant; Separation
Season: All Season
Kigo: n/a
Verse Form: Free
Process: Forward

Links 1/2: Telephone booth / Treasure chest.
Links 2/3: Treasure chest / Gold locket.
Links 3/1: Gold locket / Telephone booth.

Notes: The links above are physical connections to the abstract concept of a love relationship between two people. But at another level there are connections describing love that is "distant", "tattered", and "precious":

Link 1/2: Distant heart / Tattered love letters.
Link 2/3: Tattered love letters / Ancient memories.
Link 3/1: Precious memories / Distant heart.

The lines in verse 3 are unpunctuated because line 2 is a pivot line; this is a suitable choice because it indicates a line of continuation—the unbroken chain and links of love.

No end punctuation is used in this renhai; the love is continuous between the two people even though distance is a factor. The use of a period would indicate segments and lack of continuation.

The Last Rose: Renhai No. 45

by Shanna Baldwin-Moore (sbm) & John Daleiden (jd)

comet dust falls
from the milky way
another century /sbm

stargazer, reader of omens /sbm
divining tea leaves at breakfast /jd

the ultimate end,
catastrophic sky rocks—
the roses wither /jd

in Renhai Studio

Archive Id: 45
Shanna Baldwin-Moore: USA
John Daleiden: USA
Written: May 15-16, 2008

Theme: Prophetic prediction
Season: All Season
Kigo: n/a
Verse Form: Free
Process: Forward

Links 1/2: Comet dust & milky way / Stargazer & Divining.
Links 2/3: Omens & Divining / Ultimate end & Catastrophic.
Links 3/1: Wither / Century: here we have a juxtaposition of opposite — instead of additional centuries of time, we have an end of time as we know it.

Notes: The theme's prophetic prediction is of the end of life on earth as it is now known.

"The Last Rose of Summer" is a poem by Irish poet Thomas Moore, who was a friend of Byron and Shelley. Moore wrote it in 1805 while at Jenkinstown Park in County Kilkenny, Ireland. Sir John Stevenson set the poem to its beautiful melody and it was published in a collection of Moore's work called Irish Melodies (1807-34). It was made popular in the twenty first century in a recording by Charlotte Church and the Irish Tenors.

Comments about these verses:

Verse 2: Line 1: The "stargazer" who reads "omens" is a person seeking to know the future by looking into the depths of the physical universe, the galactic realms; from observations the "stargazer" can read omens; in Line 2, the same skill, "divining" the future by reading "tea leaves", is employed, but this time in a more confined time frame, "at breakfast". Hence, the two lines immerse the reader in the micro and macro frames of time.

Verse 1: The images "comet dust" and "milky way" are linked to "stargazer", verse 1, line 1. It is these objects that the "stargazer" sees: the "milky way" is a barred spiral galaxy. Although the Milky Way is one of billions of galaxies in the observable universe, the Milky Way Galaxy has special significance to humanity as it is the home galaxy of the planet Earth. The plane of the Milky Way galaxy is visible from Earth as a band of light in the night sky, and it is the appearance of this band of light which has inspired the name for our galaxy. A less observable object is the "comet dust" mentioned in verse 1, line 1. These two phenomena suggest an ongoing time continimum to the reader, hence, "another century". Line 3 suggests a longevity of time extending both into the past and the future. Cosmic scientists say it is extremely difficult to define the age at which the Milky Way formed, but the age of the oldest star in the Galaxy yet discovered is estimated to be about 13.2 billion years, nearly as old as the Universe itself. Thus, the two methods of fortelling the future in verse 2 seem to be suggesting a linear continumum extending through time and space as a future condition.

An omen (also called portent or presage) is a phenomenon that is believed to foretell the future, often signifying the advent of change. Interpretation of omens and prophetic signs is a form of divination. Omens may be considered "good" or "bad", but the term is more often used in a foreboding sense, as with the word "ominous".

Verse 3 is a prophetic prediction of an end to "things" as we know it now in the status quo. Verse 3 is a doomsday prediction of catastrophe on a galactic level, where the skies of the earth are bombarded with rocks from the skies. One result is the destruction of life on earth as we now know it. The "roses wither" is a symbolic acknowledgement of this life altering change. The rose was selected for inclusion in verse 3 as a symbol of longevity of life on earth. Roses have been in existence for around 32 million years.

The meaning of roses: http://www.thealmightyguru.com/Pointless/Roses.html

The rose plant has many other symbols as well, the leaves of a rose symbolize hope, a crown of roses symbolizes superior merit, and many others. I like 'The Last Rose' as a title because it has the following literary overtones:

The Last Rose of Summer is a poem by Irish poet Thomas Moore, who was a friend of Byron and Shelley. Moore wrote it in 1805 while at Jenkinstown Park in County Kilkenny, Ireland. Sir John Stevenson set the poem to its beautiful melody and it was published in a collection of Moore's work called Irish Melodies (1807-34). It was made popular in the twenty first century in a recording by Charlotte Church and the Irish Tenors.

'Tis the last rose of summer'

Left blooming alone;
All her lovely companions
Are faded and gone;
No flower of her kindred,
No rosebud is nigh,
To reflect back her blushes,
To give sigh for sigh.
I'll not leave thee, thou lone one!
To pine on the stem;
Since the lovely are sleeping,
Go, sleep thou with them.
Thus kindly I scatter,
Thy leaves o'er the bed,
Where thy mates of the garden
Lie scentless and dead.
So soon may I follow,
When friendships decay,
From Love's shining circle
The gems drop away.
When true hearts lie withered
And fond ones are flown,
Oh! who would inhabit,
This bleak world alone?

Saturday, July 14, 2012

Trapped in Loneliness: Renhai No. XXX

by Rita Odeh (ro) and John Daleiden (jd)

Another Scoop: Renhai No. 20

by John Daleiden (jd) & Vaughn Seward (vs)

Stringing Things: Renhai No. 27

by John Daleiden (jd) & Vaughn Seward (vs)

Spring Essence: Renhai No. 31

by Gillena Cox (gc) & John Daleiden (jd)

Sunrise, Sunset: Renhai No. 40

by Vaughn Seward (vs) & John Daleiden (jd)

A Tie That Binds: Solo Renhai No. 43

by John Daleiden

The Last Rose: Renhai No. 45

by Shanna Baldwin-Moore (sbm) & John Daleiden (jd)