David LaSpina

It’s not a total waste of time. It will look good when finished.

Or so I tell myself.

On mastodon this morning I tooted that I had spent 3 hours fiddling with the scss file of my website making the headers look just so.

Now make that most of the day.

The Sound of Cicada: A Summer Haiku in Japanese and English A summer haiku written in Japanese, inspired by the sound of cicadas. Includes full translation and reflections on nature, meditation, and seasonal words (kigo) in haiku.

眼つむれば若さを感じる蝉の声
me tsumureba wakasa kanjiru semi no koe

when I close my eyes
I feel young—
the cicada sing

laspina.org/the-cicada-s...

#haiku #smallpoems #cicada

Chiyo-ni and the Silent Moon: A Haiku of Silence Explore Chiyo-ni’s haiku “Silent Moon,” where the crescent moon becomes an autumn kigo and a meditation on silence in Japanese poetry.

Just updated the old post with this haiku

三日月にひしひしと物の静まりぬ
mikazuki ni hishihishi to mono no shizumarinu

at the crescent moon
the feeling
of silence
—Chiyo-ni

laspina.org/silent-moon/

#haiku #poetry #japanesepoetry

盗人に取り残されし窓の月
nusubito ni torinokosareshi mado no tsuki

the thief
left it
the moon at my window
—Ryōkan

laspina.org/the-thief-an...

#haiku #shortpoems #japanesepoetry

永き日も囀り足らぬひばり哉
nagaki hi mo saezuri taranu hibari kana

all the long day—
but still not tired of singing,
the skylark
—Bashō

I give a more literal translation in the post and explore meaning, connecting it with a poem from the Man’yōshů.

laspina.org/the-skylarks...

#haiku #Bashō #japanesepoetry

夕暮や馬糞の手をも菊でふく
yūgure ya ma-guso no te wo mo kiku de fuku

this evening
wiping horse poop from my hand
using a chrysanthemum
—Issa

#haiku #poop

I am constantly bouncing between paying attention to all the political news (here and America, mainly) and being overwhelmed and trying to block all mention of any politician. Am I alone this form of insanity?

Rare find. Did you try it?

いつまで旅することの爪をきる
itsu made tabi suru koto no tsume o kiru

how much longer
my traveling?
cutting my nails
—Santōka

laspina.org/santokas-hai...

#haiku

大猫よはやく行け行け妻が鳴く
ō neko yo hayaku ike ike tsuma ga naku

hey, big tomcat
get moving already!
the wife’s calling
—Issa

laspina.org/tomcat-your-...

#haiku #cats #spring

Expecting two services to get along is just hoping for too much, I suppose. Well, managing two accounts, one here and one there, shouldn't be too bad. I do really like the Famichiki server. But there seems to be some great folks here too.

早き朝聞き入れたりや鳥の声
hayaki asa kikiiretari ya tori no koe

up early
listening to the birds
sing

laspina.org/up-early-listening…

#haiku #spring

Will do! Too bad that bridge doesn't work very well. Oh well.

白梅に明くる夜ばかりとなりにけり
shiraume ni akuru yo bakari to nari ni keri

among the plum blossoms
the darkness gives way
to dawn
—Buson

#haiku #buson #smallpoems

laspina.org/the-coming-d...

YouTube video by Senator Cory Booker Live: Speaking on Trump, Musk, and America’s Moral Moment on the Senate Floor | Senator Cory Booker

I wonder how long he can go.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=v2ut...

Just heard about Senator Cory Booker's filibuster. Over 24 hours and still going, set the record for length.

#uspolitics #politics

I wrote this a few weeks ago after a warm spell in the winter and then a return to cold.

静かな夜残る寒さやまだここに
shizuka na yoru nokoru samusa ya mada koko ni

quiet outside
and cold; winter is still
here

laspina.org/winter-remai...

#haiku #winter

座禅して沈黙の音大きくて
zazenshite chinmoku no oto ookikute

sitting in zazen
the silence—
so loud

laspina.org/zazen-and-silence-…

#haiku #shortpoem #zazen

Other anti-Drumpf thoughts may also slip out, but I do try to avoid US politics for my sanity.

Things here will be mainly my #haiku and my haiku translations, but other #Japan thoughts will also come out at times I'm sure.

I was avoiding making an account here for a long time because I'm happy on Mastodon. But the link service between the two that I was using to "echo" my Mastodon account here never worked very well. So... here I am—new account!

Hello bluesky!