Polona Oblak lives in Ljubljana, Slovenia. When she's not busy making a living at a financial institution, she enjoys walks in the nature with her camera. Her haiku have appeared worldwide in publications such as Notes from the Gean, haijinx and The Heron's Nest.
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Love this haiku in its entirety but also as you use an old yet regularly used term for the moon in April:
Full Pink Moon – April This name came from the herb moss pink, or wild ground phlox, which is one of the earliest widespread flowers of the spring. Other names for this month’s celestial body include the Full Sprouting Grass Moon, the Egg Moon, and among coastal tribes the Full Fish Moon, because this was the time that the shad swam upstream to spawn.
Thanks for the explanation, alan! I never knew exactly what was meant by the term "Pink Moon." I guess that means this haiku is out of season… but no matter, I love it anyway.
It will be fascinating to hear from Polona, someone whose work I really admire. Polona is from Slovenia, so it may be different in that part of Europe as compared to the USA.
Hi, Alan and Dylan, and thanks for your kind words.
Alan, you were spot on with your comment. the april moon is what i had in mind when this haiku came into existence.
There are no specific names for full moons in Slovene folklore but we sometimes use traditional names for months, most of which are difficult if not impossible to translate. But moons and their names have fascinated me since i learned about their existence in the English language and culture (although most of the names were given by the indigenous peoples).
By the way, I write almost all of my poems directly in English. However, it being my second (or, rather, third) language i'm quite used to helping myself with dictionaries and thesauri as well as googling all kinds of stuff…
wonderful, understated work.
so tender !!!
this poem is perfect
Polana,
Most poignant.
Wonderful poem actually!
Love this haiku in its entirety but also as you use an old yet regularly used term for the moon in April:
Full Pink Moon – April This name came from the herb moss pink, or wild ground phlox, which is one of the earliest widespread flowers of the spring. Other names for this month’s celestial body include the Full Sprouting Grass Moon, the Egg Moon, and among coastal tribes the Full Fish Moon, because this was the time that the shad swam upstream to spawn.
Farmers Almanac 2012
all my best,
Alan
Thanks for the explanation, alan! I never knew exactly what was meant by the term "Pink Moon." I guess that means this haiku is out of season… but no matter, I love it anyway.
Hi Dylan! ;-)
It will be fascinating to hear from Polona, someone whose work I really admire. Polona is from Slovenia, so it may be different in that part of Europe as compared to the USA.
Alan
Hi, Alan and Dylan, and thanks for your kind words.
Alan, you were spot on with your comment. the april moon is what i had in mind when this haiku came into existence.
There are no specific names for full moons in Slovene folklore but we sometimes use traditional names for months, most of which are difficult if not impossible to translate. But moons and their names have fascinated me since i learned about their existence in the English language and culture (although most of the names were given by the indigenous peoples).
By the way, I write almost all of my poems directly in English. However, it being my second (or, rather, third) language i'm quite used to helping myself with dictionaries and thesauri as well as googling all kinds of stuff…
Thanks Polona, it's great to see a reply from the author, and I feel I've learned a lot, which as a fellow writer, I love. ;-)
Alan
thank you for all your kind comments, everyone. they are much appreciated.
lovely it is an excruciating task to write in a foreign language.laudible
Well done. Very nice poem