The "wish I had written these" TANKA PAGE
On this page are examples (with permission from the authors) of what I believe to be (imho) exceptional tanka that represents the genre in content and form. Tanka that I greatly admire by poets I greatly admire. I will be adding to this page from time to time, so be sure to stop back.
the ocean
was in a rage last night
but today,
these peace offerings
of blue mussels and kelp
Debbie Strange
(1st Place, 2018 TSA Sanford Goldstein International Tanka Contest)
wind on the hill
coming from the north;
my gift to you
if I had the power
to cool this sultry day
Adelaide B Shaw
(cattails 2016)
autumn falls
I cling to thistles
again in the fog
my key left under the stone
in case I sleep too deep
Lavana Kray
(from her new book Counterpoint)
on this night
of our awareness,
the aurora
brushes an ensō
across lake and sky
Debbie Strange
(HM, 2018 TSA Sanford Goldstein International Tanka Contest)
nearly winter
the days pass with a quickness
unheeded;
there is no point to ask
why I didn't pay attention
Adelaide B Shaw
(2006 TSA Anthology)
midnight train
dwindling with you -
only my eyes
need several minutes
to adjust to darkness
Lavana Kray
(from her book Counterpoint)
mute swans
under a moon bridge
the things
I should have confessed
make no difference now
Debbie Strange
(1st Place, 2016 Fleeting Words Tanka Contest)
anticipation
slipping in with the cold
of December;
like a child I plan and dream
and polish my sparkle
Adelaide B Shaw
(moonset spring 2010)
a whiff of you
in the wet lavender
field -
I change my T-shirt
with the scarecrow's
Lavana Kray
( from her book Counterpoint)
gulls nesting
on the cottage roof
fallen feathers
sprouting from my boots
today, my feet have wings
Debbie Strange
(HM, 2015 Undertow Tanka Review Tanka Contest)
summer night voices—
we listen to katydids
and tree frogs;
our silent conversation
comes in soft breaths
Adelaide B Shaw
(Honorable Mention 2005 TSA International Tanka Contest Winner)
time runs out
and so do all those answers
without questions -
you can still find out
about my favourite colour
Lavana Kray
(from her book Counterpoint)
we hold hands
as we fall into sleep,
shared dreams
at the confluence
of our fingertips
Debbie Strange
(Atlas Poetica Special Feature: Dream Alchemy, September 2018)
finally,
something is going on
in the desert -
the print of your steps
filled with tadpoles
Lavana Kray
(from her book Counterpoint)
your fingers
played a symphony
in my hair
when I was a cello
and you were the bow
Debbie Strange
(Tanka Editor's Choice, cattails, January 2015)
the languid nights gone
chill winds, hinting of winter
chase away lovers;
bare branches let in the sky
and the earth turns brown
Adelaide B Shaw
(Anglo-Japanese Tanka Society Journal, 2005)
the dry ache
of a long goodbye
how do we
reach the other side
with the bridge washed out
Debbie Strange
(Tanka Editor's Choice, cattails, January 2016)
one by one,
the cherry trees begin
to die -
I overlook again
your indifference
Lavana Kray
(from her book Counterpoint)
Grandma’s crazy quilt
everything and anything
sewn together
piecing years of living
making her own sense
Adelaide B Shaw
Red Lights, 2015
the graffiti
of firefly stars at dusk
we follow
until our eyes adjust
to the narrative of night
Debbie Strange
(Earth: Our Common Ground - A Song of Short Songs Anthology, April 2017)
his birthday today
so many years we came
with gifts of love;
a spring celebration
no longer observed
Adelaide B Shaw
(Modern English Tanka; Ash Moon Anthology, 2006)
a lullaby
of snow fluttering
against the tent
unzipping our cocoons
we emerge into winter
Debbie Strange
GUSTS 20, Fall/Winter 2014
ice-skating
through a winter garden
of frost flowers . . .
there is a certain grace
in learning how to fall
Debbie Strange
(Mariposa 39, Autumn/Winter 2018)