A TINY FLOWER: Inspiration for a Poem

My inspiration to write a book of poetry came from meeting four special local poets. I felt the excitement in their voices as they spoke of the steps involved in producing individual works for their published book of poetry. I enjoyed hearing them read a selection of the poems live, and listening to their complete recital of the full collection of poetry on compact disc. My full acknowledgement to these poets appears in my own publication:

 

  

ANOTHER NEW BEGINNING 70 Poems for 70 Days available at Amazon

 

I wrote these 70 poems as a birthday gift to myself. Over the next 70 Sundays, I will submit each of the poems in the order of composition, along with a short comment about the poem’s style or theme, often including a complementary photograph. (Please see last Sunday’s post which reveals the true inspiration for this book of poetry and a few interesting details about renshi poetry.) 

As my plans for this little book materialized, I decided to open with an occurrence so freshly experienced that it was still "cooling on the rack." (This pie-metaphor foreshadows other pie references in the poems to come. Childhood comfort food sticks with you!) 

Lei draping on King Kamehameha Day

 

The ink for my first poem spilled onto the page after a nice young man of college age walked up to me at a Honolulu bus stop on June 11, 2015, King Kamehameha Day. The young man offered me a tiny yellow blossom. He smiled and said, “A beautiful flower for a beautiful lady.” I’m sure I must have reminded him of his (exceptionally young-looking) great-grandmother. Perhaps he was feeling nostalgic for home. I accepted the flower and smiled back. As he walked away with a light step, I felt he had made the world a brighter place for having shared his joy of life.

 

A Tiny Flower

 

Gold, each tiny petal

unites to form the helmet

of a flower’s bloom.

 

Together, their beauty

like solid sunshine

takes my breath away

 

A kind word, shared

without expectation, forms

a binding link to the universe.

 

Gazes remain fixed

as I board TheBus in silence

and still smiling, take my seat

 

Air brakes lift

We roll forward, and

the universe smiles back.

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