Haiku: Glint

seals sunning themselves on a sand bar

the glint
of a decommissioned rig
– spring ocean

© Xenia Tran

The Asahi Shimbun, 19 May 2023

a bank of shingle and the rolling waves of the firth beyond

We are taking a short break on this blog and will be back on Wednesday 7th June.

You can still find us active on our sister blog tomorrow and Monday.

Wishing you all a wonderful Wednesday and a peaceful two weeks,

with love from Xenia xxx

Photographs by Xenia Tran, edited in lr.

Weekend Sky #101

Lens-Artists Weekly Photo Challenge #250: Skyscapes or Cloudscapes

CMMC: May Alphabet – Any Word with an i (rig, shingle)

Haiku: Queen Bee

close up of a honey bee feeding on lavender

queen bee –
in spring’s waters
a new humming

© Xenia Tran

The Asahi Shimbun, 5 May 2023

purple lavender in bloom

Wishing you all a wonderful Wednesday and a peaceful rest of the week,

with love from Xenia xxx

Photographs by Xenia Tran, edited in lr.

Cee’s Flower of the Day

CMMC: May Color – Imperial Purple

Haiku: Double Daffodils

macro shot of double daffodils with raindrops

double daffodils –
the shape of a journey
in the rain

© Xenia Tran

macro shot of raindrops on and within a double daffodil

Wishing you all a wonderful Wednesday and a peaceful rest of the week,

with love from Xenia xxx

Photographs by Xenia Tran, edited in lr.

Cee’s Flower of the Day – Double Daffodil

CMMC: April – Pick a Topic from my Photo (Flowers)

Haiku: Moonless Sky

green aurora over the Moray Firth

moonless sky –
the clouds clear
for green aurora

© Xenia Tran

Autumn Moon Haiku Journal Volume 5:1, Autumn/Winter 2021-22

northern lights over the Moray Firth through the clouds

Wishing you all a wonderful Wednesday and a peaceful rest of the week,

with love from Xenia xxx

Photographs by Xenia Tran, edited in lr.

Weekend Sky #93

Lens-Artists Weekly Photo Challenge #242: New Experiences

Tanka Sequence: Light in the Shadows

white crocus buds and leaves appearing through snow

grey walls
a grey polished floor
reflecting
our movements
the jangling keys

doors
opened and locked
by strangers
behind us a free world
turns grey and disappears

female prisoners
scan my face, my eyes
while being open
it is hard not to look
at what I can see

how blue
the light around the mother
who hurt
her child’s abuser
tears running down her cheeks

we talk and listen
to each prisoner’s song
first in rows
then in a circle
a pink light glows

© Xenia Tran

Ribbons, Winter 2023: Volume 19, Number 1

lilac white crocus buds appearing through snow
flowering currant lit up by the afternoon soon

More than twenty years ago, I ran a series of workshops in a women’s prison that linked the chakra system and its colours to meditation practice. The first session in this series inspired the above sequence.

Wishing you all a wonderful Wednesday and a peaceful rest of the week,

with love from Xenia xxx

Photographs by Xenia Tran, edited in lr.

Cee’s Flower of the Day

Lens-Artists Weekly Photo Challenge #241: Spring

Weekly Prompts Midweek Challenge: Wait

Haiku: She Sparkles

Mathiola Incana Alba

close up of Mathiola Incana Alba


she sparkles
from the inside out
incana alba

© Xenia Tran

close up of Mathiola Incana Alba seen from above

May women all over the world always be free to sparkle and live their lives in peace.

To celebrate International Women’s Day, we’re sharing a video of the talented Danish trio Stundom, who recently performed their beautiful piece Stjerner i Par (stars in pairs) on BBC Alba:

We are taking a short blogging break and will be back on Wednesday 22 March 2023.

Wishing you all a peaceful week ahead,

with love from Xenia xxx

Photographs by Xenia Tran, edited in lr.

Lens-Artists Weekly Photo Challenge #239: Finding Peace

Cee’s Flower of the Day

Haiku: When Time Stops

a woodland trail towards the sea with small clusters of snowdrops

when time stops
towards the sea
snowdrops

© Xenia Tran

close up of snowdrops in the morning sun

Wishing you all a wonderful Wednesday,

with love from Xenia xxx

Photographs by Xenia Tran, edited in lr.

CFFC: Things People Visit

Cee’s Flower of the Day

Haiku: Fiddles and Bows

a wooden walkway across bog lands towards the mountains

fiddles and bows
an old man bends his tune
the highland way

© Xenia Tran

The Bamboo Hut, Issue One, 2023

a lochan below snow-capped mountains

In the spirit of the poem and Amy’s prompt, we are also delighted to share an instrumental piece by Scottish musician Jonny Hardie, inspired by his visit to Goa:

Wishing you all a wonderful Wednesday and a peaceful rest of the week,

with love from Xenia xxx

Photographs by Xenia Tran, edited in lr.

Lens-Artists Weekly Photo Challenge #236: East meets West, North meets South

Your Daily Word Prompt: Kinship

Haiku: Owl Song

close up of a snow-covered clematis seed

owl song –
mother’s hair as white
as the field

© Xenia Tran

The Bamboo Hut, Issue One, 2023

close up of snow-covered lunaria annua seed pods

Wishing you all a wonderful Wednesday,

with love from Xenia xxx

Photographs by Xenia Tran, edited in lr.

Lens-Artists Weekly Photo Challenge #234: Messages

CMMC: February Close Up or Macro

Haiku: Lone Hiker

a snow-capped mountain above a stream full of snow-melt

lone hiker
his red scarf flaps
in the wind

© Xenia Tran

haikuKATHA Issue 15, January 2023

blue sky appearing above a bend on a hillside trail

Wishing you all a wonderful Wednesday,

with love from Xenia xxx

Photographs by Xenia Tran, edited in lr.

Rag Tag Daily Prompt: Recharge