Whippet Wisdom – a Highland Journey
A journey through the seasons with two adopted whippets, a poet and a camera
ah the bliss
when we come to this place
late summer
the chiming of cones falling
stays with us every year
© Xenia Tran
We are taking a short blogging break to enjoy the fine weather and will be back on Thursday 22 September 2022.
Wishing you all a happy Thursday and a peaceful weekend ahead,
with love from Misty and Xenia xxx
Photographs by Xenia Tran, edited in lr.
Tanka Thursday: When
CFFC: Nature
Weekly Prompts Wednesday Challenge: Trees
Loch an Eilein Castle
light rain
on the crumbling ruins
grass and moss grow
in the shade of willows
all as one with nature
© Xenia Tran
Wishing you all a blessed Thursday and a peaceful rest of the week,
with love from Misty and Xenia xxx
Photographs by Xenia Tran, edited in lr.
Tanka Thursday: Ruins
CFFC: Man-made Items
loch shore –
lights glitter on the water
while we listen
to the grandmother tree
sharing glimpses of the past
© Xenia Tran
Wishing you all a happy Thursday and a peaceful rest of the week,
with love from Misty and Xenia xxx
Photographs by Xenia Tran, edited in lr.
Tanka Thursday: Glimpse
CFFC: Connects You to the Present Moment
Cairngorms National Park
so easy
to remember why we came
before we return
to the loch and forest
where nature’s beauty rises
© Xenia Tran
Wishing you all a happy Thursday and a peaceful rest of the week,
with love from Misty and Xenia xxx
Photographs by Xenia Tran, edited in lr.
Tanka Thursday: Easy
CFFC: Reminds You of Nature’s Beauty
cooling
as we run towards it
the turquoise sea
© Xenia Tran
Wishing you all a happy Thursday and a peaceful rest of the week,
with love from Misty and Xenia xxx
Photographs by Xenia Tran, edited in lr.
Jez Braithwaite’s Water Water Everywhere #135
CFFC: Would Make a Friend Happy
Misty’s family came over for a visit this weekend and it was lovely to see them again. After a walk on the beach we went back to our house and they gave us this beautiful picture of Misty as a puppy that had been hanging on her late owner’s wall.
Misty is still very playful. She loves flinging her toys around the room as well as my slippers. Showing her the picture, she sniffs it and looks thoughtfully at her younger self. Then she turns towards the wall with pictures of our other dogs, where she is happy for us to hang it.
fruits of summer –
between blackcurrant bushes
forget-me-nots bloom
© Xenia Tran
Wishing you all a happy Monday and a peaceful new week,
with love from Misty and Xenia xxx
Photographs by Xenia Tran, edited in lr.
CFFC: Symbolizes an Act of Kindness
Weekly Prompts Weekend Challenge: Twin
dVerse Poets: It’s OLN Live
washing in
the day’s treasures
the sea retreats
© Xenia Tran
Wishing you all a happy Thursday and a peaceful rest of the week,
with love from Misty and Xenia xxx
Photographs by Xenia Tran, edited in lr.
Lens-Artists Weekly Photo Challenge #206: Treasures
CFFC: Brings a Smile to Your Face
sea lace
the first step
so small
nobody knew
the size of the ocean
© Xenia Tran
Ribbons, Spring/Summer 2022: Volume 18, Number 2
Wishing you all a blessed Thursday and a peaceful rest of the week,
with love from Misty and Xenia xxx
Jez Braithwaite’s Water Water Everywhere #131
CFFC: Landscapes or Seascapes
Thursday’s Specials: Pick a Word in June 2022 (Bouldery, Perched, Surging)
Wishing you all a wonderful Wednesday,
with love from Eivor, Pearl and Xenia xxx
Photographs by Xenia Tran, edited in lr.
CFFC: Water
For Seamus
snow melt
how soon our seasons feed
the bubbling stream
I still see you bending down
to drink its water
© Xenia Tran
Ribbons, Winter 2020: Volume 16, Number 1
Member’s Choice Tanka, Honourable Mention, Ribbons, Spring/Summer 2021: Volume 16, Number 2
Seamus, a sweet lurcher whom we adopted many years ago who lived to the ripe age of thirteen, would always stop here for a drink from the stream. Ever since his passing, we find ourselves pausing at the very same spot on our walks, as if we are still waiting for him to have a drink. One of those moments inspired the above poem, which was first published in the Winter 2020 edition of Ribbons.
The poem was subsequently selected by Susan Constable as a Member’s Choice Tanka with an Honourable Mention and published in the Spring/Summer 2020 edition of Ribbons. This was her commentary and interpretation of the poem:
Xenia’s tanka adheres to a more traditional tanka form, with its s/l/s/l/l lines (both visual and aural), and its use of vivid images. I appreciate the assonance (the rhyme of vowel sounds, not necessarily the repetition of a particular letter) which appears in the words seasons/feed/stream, the alliteration of B’s in bubbling/bending, and the numerous T’s throughout the tanka. There’s also a lovely rhythm to the lines which are written with an almost-perfect iambic metre. All these pleasing sounds echo and enrich the arresting imagery.
This tanka provides some comfortable dreaming room, so my interpretations may not match those of other readers or, in fact, those of the poet. However, I sense the all-too-fast passing of time as winter melts into spring, and the poet and/or narrator grows older. I also feel the loss of a loved one who once bent to drink from this stream and, metaphorically, from Life itself.
Thank you Susan for selecting this poem as one of your honourable mention poems and for your thoughtful interpretation.
Wishing you all a happy Thursday and a peaceful rest of the week,
with love from Eivor, Pearl and Xenia xxx
Photographs by Xenia Tran, edited in lr.
CFFC: Earth
Rag Tag Daily Prompt: Guide
Word of the Day Challenge: Lyrical
Whippet Wisdom - a Highland Journey 
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