December 21st

 

midwinter dawning

ice age hill shrouded in mist

backlit with a jewel

I drove past Pegsdon Hills today. The mist was covering the top of them. The sun was muted behind it, diffusing the light such that it looked like the whole hill was alive with a wild glow. It was stunning. Clearly I couldn’t take a picture as I was driving and I had so much work to do, I couldn’t stop, but for that brief moment my mind was free of meaningless first world problems. Nature and natural forces are inspirational.

I always feel happy on midwinters day, it’s the time of year when the days slowly recover. I’m acutely aware of the encroaching darkness as the days shrink and the miserable rain and cloud come in. So today is the shortest day, tomorrow the day will be longer, imperceptibly so, but the thought of it makes me happy. This has been a year of reflection and sadness, I hope by March with the coming of colour and Spring, something will thaw in me too.

December 17th

 

neon lit city

your broken teeth don’t detract

from your winning smile

 

Despite the ticket server crashing (probably was put together in the 70s by Kraftwerk themselves), I managed to get tickets for Kraftwerk at the Tate Modern in February. So excited by this. People who say they are cold or emotionless I think just don’t get it. Neon Lights is one of the most beautiful love songs ever written.

December 15th

 

bashful lights peeking

from the Christmas tree filled with

bright birds winter warmed

Our Christmas Tree is up, one day we’ll have enough bird decorations to avoid needing baubles. A christmas tree, in my own home, always makes me happy.

 

November 22nd

 

Dark and beautiful

the trees twinkle with the pale

glow of Christmas lights

photo © Mel Melis

November 8th

the murderous pulse

folded vision, stabs of light

darkness the healer

September 25th

determination

the fierce stare into sunset

instinct, confidence

Nothing exciting, just a Haiku about playing football! Quite enjoyed it tonight, competitive. Not all my Haikus are about nature, love or the seasons. Well, ok, this one is a little bit about the seasons, as the pitch is orientated East-West, which means one side stares into the setting sun. But for me that celestial glow produced a god like performance :)

August 28th

 

the light retreating

days curl up in pink sunsets

summer hibernates

a pic I took from our bedroom window

July 21st

cream winged copper eyed

resting after collisions

fairy dust scattered

Never seen one of these moths before. It’s a Swallow Tailed Moth, it came into the house, drawn to the light, the windows were open as the night was warm. I was nervous about rescuing it, Moth wings are so delicate, they are easily broken, leaving a residue of what people call “fairy dust”, the substance which folklore suggests gives them (and fairies) flight and magic. It rested after bumping into the light fitting a few times. I think it got out again, as I didn’t see it later that evening. I hope it did anyway, these particular moths are only active for a few days in July. It was so beautiful, with a white/cream fur and metallic coppery eyes.

May 9th

Sleeping filament

Lampada Annuale

no one saw it glow

Went to the Tate Modern after work, getting the most out of my membership! I sat in the members room for a bit with a scone and some tea and did a bit of work on my laptop, then I had a wander.

The Alighiero Boetti exhibition is great fun and very thought provoking. Like many people, I kind of was drawn to the Lampada Annuale (annual lamp) which only switches itself on randomly for 11 seconds in any one year. So naturally you are drawn to it, hoping to be bestowed the wonderful gift of light.

For an online experience of the same sense of expectancy, check this fun website!

I didn’t dwell for long, but I’m sure some people wait ages. Patience is a virtue. I strolled away with a wry smile.

March 19th

Behind the blackouts

a faultless sky forgiving

alive and lucid

 

Blackout curtains are great, I think they help me to sleep better. The absence of light helps me to turn off part of my brain and leads to restful nights. I like the lottery of mornings, blearly eyed, staggering to the window to open it a peep. Check what the weather is like. How do I know it’s morning if I keep going on about flippin’ blackout curtains? Because I’ve got an alarm silly! Dur!

Anyway this morning was beautifully sunny, my pupils shrunk in pain at the sunlight assault pouring through onto my retinas. When they adjusted a bit I looked out to a perfect blue sky. The clouds were absent. Wonderful.

February 6th

 

Cautious movements, light,

Dim then bright, swirling, obscured,

Breaking through the mist.

 

I don’t like driving when the weather is awful. The possibility of ice on the roads combined with a thick mist in the dark. Stresses me out.