Tag: fpj photo challenge

Haibun: Serendipity

a blue and white whippet in a winter jacket walking on the beach

Now the snow has melted snowdrops and crocus begin to bloom. Swans are renewing their bond, young gulls are scouting for nest sites. Seasons continue to loop as if there’s no pandemic. There’s a chill from the eastern wind, even though the temperature is rising.

mirror, mirror
the sky’s blue in
every wave

© Xenia Tran

close up of the waves and surf near the tidal line

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.

Camera: Canon Powershot SX60 HS, Settings: f/4.5 – 1/640 s – ISO 125, f/5.6 – 1/400 s – ISO 100 and f/5.6 – 1/320 s – ISO 100.

Dutch Goes the Photo Tuesday Photo Challenge: Renewal

Rag Tag Daily Prompt: Repeating Shapes

Word of the Day Challenge: Serendipity

Wordless Wednesday: The Light Always Returns II

two whippets in winter jackets playing in the snow
two whippets in winter jackets running in the snow

You can see Part I of The Light Always Returns on our sister blog, Tranature.

The skies and changing light reminded me of a song by the wonderful Scottish artist and musician Dougie MacLean:

Wishing you all a blessed Wednesday,

with love from Eivor, Pearl and Xenia xxx

Photographs by Xenia Tran, edited in lr.

Settings: f/2.8 – 1/2000 s – ISO 100, f/3.4 – 1/1000 s – ISO 160 and f/3.4 – 1/1000 s – ISO 125.

Wordless Wednesday

Dutch Goes the Photo Tuesday Photo Challenge: Tomorrow

Haiku: St Brigid’s Day

two whippets in winter jackets on the beach in the snow

st brigid’s day
hand in hand we brace
the snow storm

© Xenia Tran

We are deeply honoured and delighted that the above haiku has been included in the World Haiku Series 2021, with a beautiful Japanese translation by Mr Hidenori Hiruta.

two whippets in winter jackets on the beach in the snow

Wishing you all a blessed Imbolc and St Brigid’s Day,

with love from Eivor, Pearl and Xenia xxx

Photographs by Xenia Tran, edited in lr.

PI Poetry Prompt: Imbolc/St Brigid’s Day

Dutch Goes the Photo Tuesday Photo Challenge: All You Need is Love

Thursday’s Special: Pick a Word – Shoreline

Wordless Wednesday: All You Need is Love

a black whippet in a winter jacket on a frozen beach near the dunes
two whippets in winter jackets on a wintry beach in the sunshine

Wishing you all a wonderful Wednesday,

with love from Eivor, Pearl and Xenia xxx

Photographs by Xenia Tran, edited in lr.

Camera: Canon Powershot SX60 HS, Settings: f/5.6 – 1/250 s – ISO 200, f/5.6 – 1/320 s – ISO 200 and f/5 – 1/640 s – ISO 100.

Wordless Wednesday

Dutch Goes the Photo Tuesday Photo Challenge: All You Need is Love

Tanka: Accepting the Sun

a blue and white whippet in a winter jacket walking on the beach

driftwood shelter
the tide turns to prayer
accepting the sun
with love and light as signposts
the pain can be undone

© Xenia Tran

This poem was subsequently anthologised in The Haiku Way to Healing,
edited by Robert Epstein (2022)

a black whippet in a winter jacket on the beach beside a shelter made from driftwood

Wishing you all a blessed Thursday and a peaceful rest of the week,

with love from Eivor, Pearl and Xenia xxx

Photographs by Xenia Tran edited in lr.

Camera: Canon Powershot SX60 HS, Settings: f/5.6 – 1/160 s – ISO 200 and f/5.6 – 1/200 s – ISO 200.

Dutch Goes the Photo Tuesday Photo Challenge: Twist

Tanka Thursday: Turn

PI Poetry Prompt: Pain

Tanka: Wings of a Cormorant

a black whippet in a black jacket carrying a yellow ball on the beach

birds on a rock
dogs returning yellow balls
over and over
it’s easy to disappear
in the magic of it all

© Xenia Tran

two cormorants on a rock in the sea with a flock of seagulls

Wishing you a peaceful Tuesday and may you all stay safe.

With love from Eivor, Pearl and Xenia xxx

Photographs by Xenia Tran, edited in lr.

Camera: Panasonic Lumix FZ200, Settings: f/2.8 – 1/2000 s – ISO 100 and f/4 – 1/1250 s – ISO 100.

Dutch Goes the Photo Tuesday Photo Challenge: Return

Twiglet #177: A Vacant Nest

Word of the Day Challenge: Understated

EarthRise Rolling Haiku Collaboration 2020

Year of the Nurse

We are deeply honoured and delighted to be part of EarthRise Rolling Haiku Collaboration 2020, a collaborative poem created by haiku poets from around the world.

The theme for 2020 was The Year of the Nurse and we submitted six previously unpublished haiku for this wonderful project. We are sharing three of them here today and will post the other three on our sister blog Tranature on Wednesday 22 April 2020.

simple kindness
how the nurse helps her
to walk again

© Xenia Tran

portrait of a blue and white whippet with a pink collar

adjusting pillows
before the night spreads
his final round

© Xenia Tran

a ginger and white cat sitting upright on a sofa

back from the shelter
she names her new cat
after the nurse

© Xenia Tran

The cat in the photograph is Christy. We adopted him from a feline rescue organisation in 1992 when he was believed to be nine years old. He lived with us for another ten years and we were very grateful for all the time we had together.

If you are interested in adopting a cat or dog from a shelter, please consider adopting a senior. They can have the most amazing personalities and are a true joy to have around.

The full set of contributions to EarthRise Rolling Haiku Collaboration 2020 is available as a free download from the The Haiku Foundation. A very big thank you to all the contributors and to Jim Kacian and the team for featuring my poems and putting this beautiful edition together.

The second and third haiku in this sequence were subsequently included in Robert Epstein’s beautiful The Helping Hand Haiku Anthology (2020):

front cover of The Helping Hand Haiku Anthology

A very big thank you to Robert for featuring my poem and putting this heart-warming anthology together.

The same two haiku were later featured in Akita International Haiku Network’s World Haiku Series 2020 with beautiful translations into Japanese by Mr Hidenori Hiruta. A warm-hearted thank you to Mr Hiruta for including these poems in respect of the 326th anniversary of Matsuo Bashõ’s passing and all the souls of those who lost their lives to COVID-19.

We wish you all very happy Monday and may you be safe and well,

With love from Eivor, Pearl and Xenia xxx

Photographs by Xenia Tran, edited in lr.

Friendly Friday Photo Challenge: Something Good

Dutch Goes the Photo Tuesday Photo Challenge: Animals

Discover Prompt #19: Three

dVerse Poets MTB: Haiku Sequence

Tanka: Precious Places

a blue and white whippet in a winter jacket sniffing washed up driftwood

slowing down
the smell of driftwood
ignites a fire
anchoring the memories
a special place we love

© Xenia Tran

a blue and white whippet in a winter jacket walking in front of a line of driftwood

These photographs were taken on the shores of Loch Laggan in February 2020 before the current travel restrictions were in place.

You can see more images from this walk in our February posts Wings of Snow, Still Mind, Big World and Love at First Sight.

Wishing you a beautiful rest of the week and may you all stay safe and well,

with love from Eivor, Pearl and Xenia xxx

Photographs by Xenia Tran, edited in lr.

Camera: Panasonic Lumix FZ200, Settings: f/2.8 – 1/1250 s – ISO 100 and f/2.8 – 1/2000 s – ISO 100.

Dutch Goes the Photo Tuesday Photo Challenge: Travel

Discover Prompt #16: Slow

Your Daily Word Prompt: Ignite

Word of the Day Challenge: Precious

Tanka: Holding Light

a blue and white whippet walking through a tidal lagoon

holding light
the way it happens
when a heart opens
in this new, quiet landscape
where angels can be heard

© Xenia Tran

a blue and white whippet walking away from a tidal lagoon

We are staying positive for the dogs and they are a great help in filling us with hope for the future.

We hope you all stay well and healthy and wish you a peaceful Thursday and a beautiful rest of the week,

with love from Eivor, Pearl and Xenia xxx

Photographs by Xenia Tran, edited in lr.

Camera: Panasonic Lumix FZ200, Settings: f/2.8 – 1/2000 s – ISO 100.

Dutch Goes the Photo Tuesday Photo Challenge: Hope

Twiglet #170: Holding Light

Discover-Prompt #2: Open

Haibun: Strengthening Connections

two whippets in winter jackets on tidal sands beside a rock

A music of wind and waves we would never have known weaves her magic through delicate times. An invisible urge helps us connect at a deeper level, with ourselves, our fellow humans, all living creatures.

slowing down
the earth can breathe again
listen, listen

© Xenia Tran

two whippets in winter jackets sniffing a rock on the beach

Wishing you all a very happy Tuesday,

with love from Eivor, Pearl and Xenia xxx

Photographs by Xenia Tran, edited in lr.

Camera: Canon Powershot SX60 HS, Settings: f/4.5 – 1/800 s – ISO 200 and f/4 – 1/1600 s – ISO 200.

Dutch Goes the Photo Tuesday Photo Challenge: Connect

dVerse Poets Quadrille #100: Abracadabra – Where’s My Magic Wand?

Rag Tag Daily Prompt: Delicate