Happy New Year Pub Dwellers! Lisa introduces us to the “Burning Haibun” ~ a poetic form that begins with haibun prose, then undergoes erasure until what remains is a haiku / senryu
For the past twenty years Carl has worked in a busy supermarket. Everyone knows his name, loves him. He is funny, personable, brightens lives ~ sometimes, his laughter carries across the store loud enough to spread smiles of joy ~ transforming chaos into a shopper's escapade.
His life is not without without pain. We often hear the words "correct and normal" from people these days. As if their version of right, is the only map worth following. Most days he understands they are just words, lines people draw in the sand ~ lines he is able to step over.
My son's life is not defined by what he cannot do, but by the depth with which he does everything. A reminder that art exists outside the museum. that grace is not reserved for the dance, that life, even with its challenges ~ can still be a masterpiece.
In the depths of supermarket lines / busy hands shuffle coupons / like cards in a game / an escapade designed to hide pain / from rising prices / luxuries / a dance of survival sans grace / defined by what they can afford / not what they deserve / across aisles conversation splits / like frayed seams / 'correct' and 'normal' / words they try to avoid / stepping over cracks too deep for repair / lost in the chaos of divide / the masterpiece of unity / crumbling step by step / under the weight of discord.
life is feeling frayed
art and grace are luxuries
we dance to survive