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A Ball of Snow

you make the fire
and I’ll show you something wonderful:
a big ball of snow!

Notes

My friend Sora had moved in nearby, and we visit each other anytime, night or day. While I am preparing a meal, he breaks up branches for the fire; when I boil tea, he breaks up ice for the water. He likes the solitary life and our friendship is as strong as iron. One night after a snowfall he came visiting:

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Comments

1 - 8 of 8
  • mermaid7
    March 3, 2007

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    I like this style of writing--it's almost an exercise of thought with the prose, then the "surgery" of the extra words to create the haiku. The revelation of the friendship, the commoness of their activities together, and the quiet that exists within their world is something that makes me think of Walden Pond, but with a friend.

  • tishang
    March 19, 2005
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    I was wondering, whose translation is this? Wouldn't that have something to do with whether or not it is in the public domain? The prose entry sounds very much like Basho, and then his witty turn in the verse! He would have been an interesting person to know.


    • ami uposhonghar
      March 2, 2007
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      I think I would have to agree with what you just said. Translantion is very important factor to ponder about. For example, metaphors, are something one can't paraphrase correctly without knowing what the writer actually thought of.
      ~Madd

  • Lotus Of Lakshmi
    January 19, 2005
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    Aha! Wonderful!! This was so enjoyable with its brilliant imagery. Simple and yet awesome! This haibun makes me feel that Basho liked to be alone for sometime, away from the hustle and bustle of daily life, all by himself in a quietness he seemed to have enjoyed. It was so nice to read a day of his life in this haibun.

    -Charishma


  • November 28, 2004
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    Nice!

  • myron
    November 13, 2004
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    enjoyed this one - a delightful haibun highlighting the love of friendship between two hermetic types...i think basho liked to retreat for period into a solitary state after bouts of intense public life...


  • Ahkam Moderators member
    November 11, 2004
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    This haiku is about the life and the sequence of problems one has to face...thought the life period we tackle with one problem and another captures us...for every problem there is a solution and in every solution there are many more unavoidable problems.

  • Hylean
    June 17, 2004
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    lol, i like this, although i dont get it myself, still it was enjoyable to read, and the last line makes this sound more like a joke, but its still good.

1 - 8 of 8