Of the three master haiku poets, Issa is perhaps the most beloved. He has been characterized as an ancient Whitman or Neruda or Burns. His poetry can be lively and humorous, pious and honest, or sarcastic and full of rage. He wrote thousands of poems in his life, and many … Read the rest
Following Basho, the next master haiku poet of ancient Japan was Yosa Buson. Buson, however, was much more than a master haiku poet; he also was a distinguished painter. And in his haiku, this comes across through a visual intensity and a love for color.
… Read the restA tethered horse,
snow
One day in the summer of 1969 my brother handed me a paperback book, saying, “Here, I think you’ll like this one.” The book was ‘The Sirens of Titan’ by Kurt Vonnegut, Jr. My brother Phil was a science fiction reader. He went through SF paperbacks like candy, and he … Read the rest
