Renku Sessions

The Renku Sessions: Rendezvous – Week 10

renku_300

The Renku Sessions continue on The Haiku Foundation. I am Patricia Machmiller and I am honored to be your guide for an eighteen-verse renku, in which we will compose one verse per week until completion.

Hello, everyone. I hope that in your corner of the world you are safe and well. My corner is going okay—long walks, cooking, calling friends, sending postcards, doing renku! We haven’t heard from Betty—good wishes go out to her. How have you all been faring? You seem to be enjoying life, but that’s what thinking about love does, doesn’t it? Even though love can go sour, it still fills us with sweet, life-affirming memories.

This has been interesting—the progression of the last two verses and now the verse we are working on this week. I’ve become more aware than ever that there are some words with great power. And clearly magic is one. We started this sequence with a glancing reference to the tale of “Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves” by way of “an opened sesame/seed packet.” The next verse, a love verse, suggests it happened by magic. And now in this verse we are trying to link to the magic and yet shift away and it is oh, so hard. That word is like a black hole attracting all our ideas. And there were some clever responses. Here are some that attracted me:

their anniversary
cake candles set off
the fire alarm

*

Ancestry.com
says she has wildflower
DNA

Dan Campbell

 

beaming
as their firstborn walks
down the aisle

Kanjini Devi

 

 

day after day
the charm
of your intellect

*

fortune cookies
placed on the
honeymoon bed

Carol Jones

 

her disappearing
birth
control pills

*

he reads
all her hidden
thoughts

*

but she misspells
his last name
on the invites

Wendy C. Bialek

 

producing
a condom from
out of his hat

*

while his back
is turned she pulls
the old switch-a-roo

Michael Henry Lee

 

the climax for her
is finishing
a jigsaw puzzle

Marilyn Potter

 

put off balance
by their first spat
over nothing

*

which family
for which holiday
still up in the air

*

some turbulence
as they descend
for landing

Judt Shrode

 

delicate fingers
on his arm
in the pas de deux

Pauline O’Carolan

 

in the place we first met
we stare together
at what’s no longer there

*

memories
of exes
disappear

Mark Powderhill

 

resting for a spell
before
diving back in

Laurie Greer

 

the fun stops
with the rocket
landing

*

initials
in the heart of a tree
splinter in the sun

Robert Kingston

 

after my departure
the smell of her hair
still follows me

Vasile Moldovan

 

she wore
his strand of pearls
knotted

Princess K

 

pretending
to show him an article
sits on his lap

Margherita Ptericcione

 

her something old
is a bracelet charm
from his grandmama

*

like charmed quarks
their relationship
thrives on give and take

Clysta Seney

 

+one for the wedding
chosen as my dime
lands heads

Ellen Compton

 

I use her glasses
to find
my glasses

Andrew Shimield

 

forever slipping
in and out of
sheer bliss

Barbara A. Taylor

 

he says there’s something
in the way she wriggles
her nose

Lorin Ford

 

never grown up
laughing
they vanish

Kiti Saarinen

 

 

And the final pool of verses that I considered were these:

Ancestry.com
says she has wildflower
DNA

Dan Campbell

This is a wild and totally captivating verse. The idea of wildflower DNA seems magical and yet . . . plausible. And what a tribute to a lover—it’s way better than being compared to a rose. Bravo, Dan. But, of course, you already have a verse here . . . and I’m trying to avoid flowers if I can.

 

beaming
as their firstborn walks
down the aisle

Kanjini Devi

A sweet verse that links through the word “beaming”—like “Beam me up, Scotty”—a bit of sci-fi “magic.” And it moves the romance forward.

 

put off balance
by their first spat
over nothing

Judt Shrode

I liked this verse because it was one of the few verses that linked, not to magic, but to the fall, and it followed the magic of the first bloom of love with the difficulties of relationship.

 

delicate fingers
on his arm
in the pas de deux

Pauline O’Carolan

The phrase “pas de deux” meaning dance for two is, by itself, magical—so lovely and loving.

 

in the place we first met
we stare together
at what’s no longer there

Mark Powderhill

This verse has many different possible interpretations: what’s not there could be a house lost to fire, a park made into a parking lot, or the relationship itself. Very poignant. And the phase “what’s no longer there” links to the magical notion of now you see it, now you don’t.

 

like charmed quarks
their relationship
thrives on give and take

Clysta Seney

Clysta takes us from the magic of love to the “magic” of particle physics via a pair of charmed quarks! From the supernatural to the subatomic. I can’t resist following this twist. So, this will be our next verse.

 

Here’s our renku so far:

 

rendezvous —
snowshoes piled high
outside the sauna                              Sally Biggar

an antiphonal greeting
of one wolf to the others                  Mary Kendall

the jury still out
on gray
vs grey                                               Laurie Greer

a little half-
and-half in my tea                              M. R. Defibaugh

scarecrows and
moons are the best
listeners                                              Dan Campbell

at the autumn gates
who can hear me now                        Wendy C. Bialek

an opened sesame
seed packet
from India                                          Betty Shropshire

and as if by magic
they fall in love                                   Marion Clarke

like charmed quarks
their relationship
thrives on give and take                       Clysta Seney

 

 

And now instructions and considerations for our tenth verse. This verse can be another love verse or not. Let’s see what develops. It should link to the ninth verse, but have no connection to the eighth verse. The requirements for this verse are:

  • a two-line poem of fourteen syllables or less
  • this could be a love image or it might not be. If it is a love verse, then it would be the third in the sequence and the romance should again advance. In the renku the love verses are romantic love, not love of children or love of parents, for example. Note that we should avoid the mention of beverages for one more verse, no celestial references for two verses, and no building structures like gates, fences, houses, doors, etc. for three verses. Avoid proper names and seed-like things for four verses; avoid the names of countries for a long while. Avoid references to the occult for five verses.
  • a single syntactical structure flowing over two lines.

 

Please enter your verses in the comments box, below. I will be reviewing these offers until midnight on Tuesday, April 28 (California time zone). On Thursday, April 30, there will be a new posting containing my selection for the tenth verse, some discussion of other appreciated verses, and instructions for composing the eleventh verse.

I hope you stay safe and healthy. Do take all precautions. And I hope you are enjoying the renku writing process. Even though we are trying to write a great poem, the best way to do that is to be playful and let your mind be free. I encourage you to be whimsical, be daring, let your imagination loose. Let’s see what happens. I look forward to seeing your work.

And thank you, John, for your help in posting this.

In gratitude to all,

Patricia

This Post Has 221 Comments

  1. celebrating their tenth
    with a new Tesla
    *
    kids say the irresistible force
    married the immovable object

    1. A humorous furthering of the physics here, Liz Ann—irresistible force and immovable object. I wonder which one my kids would say I was…? I like when a verse makes me simultaneously chuckle and ponder! Thanks!
      *
      Autumn

      1. you’re welcome dan ….i originally found this on the amazon prime time free
        .
        htts://www.sxsw.com/festivals/films/lineup

        with a great deal of other shorts and longer pieces of new art inspirations. they will end soon in early may…so i am watching what ever i can before they start charging or they disappear.

  3. a pouting smile
    under the white heads

    ************************

    hand in hand
    waiting for godot

    2. I really enjoyed the existential twist of this verse offering, Angiola. Makes me want to brush up on my Beckett! Unless you are referring to the game engine from MIT…hmm, lots of possibilities herein!
      *
      Autumn

      1. thanks Judt and Autumn, I’m glad you liked it … nobody knows what awaits us now, and I thought of the most famous wait, that of Beckett

  4. like charmed quarks
    their relationship
    thrives on give and take
    .
    on the side an empty box
    of rainbow tissues

    1. the last rainbow
      drawn from the tissue box
      .
      a box of rainbow tissues
      on the side

      1. I like where you’re going with this one, Robert.
        .
        I particularly like
        .
        the last rainbow
        drawn from the tissue box

  5. believing there’s a third time
    for everything
    *
    they’ve learned to believe
    there’s a third time for everything
    *

  7. .
    string theory sounds like
    a universal cello
    .
    .
    string theory suggests
    a universal cello
    .

  10. and they lived happily
    ever after is a lie
    #####
    albino crow standing alone
    in the parking lot
    #####
    pity bigamists, they have
    more than one mother-in-law

  14. like charmed quarks
    their relationship
    thrives on give and take
    .
    Clysta Seney
    .
    back from assertive class
    she tells him she’s leaving
    .
    at the winning post the ashes
    of his favourite horse
    .
    from thirty lengths down
    Red Rum romps home again

        1. I like the duality of this, Robert! When I first read it, I thought about people living way out where God lost his shoes. But then I read it again and saw a woman far from the epicenter of the argument slamming the door. The first makes me think about how we might be less intimidated about slamming doors with no neighbors as witnesses. The second made me consider a woman who perhaps only has the courage to slam the door when she’s far from possible repercussions. I’m sure there are other interpretations waiting to be gleaned here, too.
          *
          Autumn

  20. ‘Charmed quarks’ sounds more romantic than the explanations! A great linking verse, Clysta.
    …
    Verse 1:
    …
    she said that science bored her
    and so did he
    …
    Verse 2:
    …
    it all disappeared
    into a black hole
    …
    Verse 3:
    …
    I picked up his plate
    and threw it
    …
    Verse 4:
    …
    she presents him
    with a ticket to ride
    …
    Verse 5:
    …
    only onion weed grew
    in their garden

    Verse 6:
    …
    now it’s dead
    in the water
    …

  31. strangely attracted to rhyme
    for naming their twins
    *
    the twins’ rhyming names too cute
    by half
    *
    their uncanny way
    of completing each other’s thoughts
    *
    starting a run of odd eyes
    with their firstborn child
    *

  34. he told her that some princes
    miss their lily pad days
    ####
    mix devotion with sacrifice
    and add sprinkles of lust

  35. putting greens beat sand
    traps for making love
    ######
    ox carts beat buses
    with chickens for making love
    ######
    hammock sex
    will sprain your back

  36. Congrats Clysta!
    *
    like charmed quarks
    their relationship
    thrives on give and take
    .
    Clysta Seney

    *
    oh! oh! oh! oooohhh god!
    particle
    *

  37. like charmed quarks
    their relationship
    thrives on give and take
    *
    a little blue pill
    gets the blood pumping
    *
    the watchmaker repairs
    an antique hunter
    *
    hunter= pocket watch

  38. when the thrill is gone
    the bills still remain
    *******************
    pease porridge hot
    pease porridge cold
    *****************
    in-between tides
    a collection of sea glass

    1. Like the last verse, Michael Henry.
      Not only for the give and take element but also recycling natures way, so pretty.

  40. like charmed quarks
    their relationship
    thrives on give and take
    Clysta Seney
    .
    he tells her shelling onions
    is good for headaches
    .
    she asks what his friends would think
    seeing him in her clothes
    .

  41. like charmed quarks
    their relationship
    thrives on give and take Clysta Seney
    .
    she gets to wear the pants
    and he the feather boa

  42. at the mercy of mutations
    in what they cannot see
    *
    a single strand of RNA
    entangles them both
    *
    Or
    the two entangled
    by a single strand of RNA
    *

      1. Thankyou, Wendy, glad you saw my intent. That song is now an ear worm, today 🙂

          1. Great link, I like the term ‘sticky song’
            .
            Well, I don’t know about being company 🙂

    1. Oh, geez, sorry to be littering the feed with a blatant backlink. Maybe it’s because I’ve been shooting up Clorox.

  50. like charmed quarks
    their relationship
    thrives on give and take
    Clysta Seney
    .
    a string of martins
    feed between the waves
    .
    a string of martins
    dance the waves tune
    .
    his constant fishing
    leaves a sour taste
    .

  51. forty years later his high
    school condoms are still virgins
    #####
    stale tacos
    taste like loneliness
    ######
    watching her still makes
    him trip on curbs

    2. i like both “watching her” verses…dan, …..but the first… gives me more wiggle room for imagination.

      1. Thank you Lorin, I only knew of the returning kind.
        Now I’m aware of so many more!

  54. together they tease out
    the meaning of life
    *
    remember when wrestling
    each other’s bodies?
    *
    my molecular structure loves
    your atoms
    *
    she kisses him
    to shut him up
    *
    if ever we part
    throw bread crumbs down

  55. thought I’d replace ‘their’ and ‘reignited’ :-

    *
    her passion for him
    renewed on borrowed time
    *

  56. like charmed quarks
    their relationship
    thrives on give and take
    .
    Clysta Seney
    .
    in biology class the teacher
    assigns the first to the best
    .
    in biology class the first choice
    for the best student

    1. Dan — Another nice love note. I notice several submissions mention the sun. And, they are compelling. Patricia, is the sun considered a celestial body in renku? Thanks, Clysta

      1. Vandana Shiva is AMAZING–I’ve been listening to interviews with her in the alternative press for years now. I made mention of her Seed Freedom movement in the Call for my ATPO Peaceful Protest Special in the hopes more people might become aware of the important work she is doing. Thank you for sharing this link here. Interestingly enough, it has a tie-in to the last verse, as Vandana Shiva originally set out to be a physicist before she was drawn into activism.
        *
        Autumn

        1. Yes, I thought of that connection too, Autumn. I love Vandana’s work! Thanks by the way for all the explanations you’ve posted re quarks. I got Clysta’s verse on an intuitive level and all the data you’ve shared has given it even more clarity.

      2. thanks kanjini for posting her interview….
        .
        she is the undying light
        at the the tunnel’s end

  59. like charmed quarks
    their relationship
    thrives on give and take
    Clysta Seney
    *
    the spookiest actions
    at under six feet
    *
    trying to stay cheerful
    through every travail
    *

  60. .
    she receives a phone call
    from her med school beau
    .
    after disinfecting the TV
    they toast each other
    .
    his chalked numbers
    calculate a certain loss
    .
    the overwatered orchid
    drops its last blossom
    .

  63. most universes only have
    blackholes and tears
    ########
    her gravitational waves
    can shatter your heart

  65. her orbit’s sparks shatter the dark
    ness
    ######
    her dark energy
    powers his cosmos
    ######

  68. his time sensitive
    understanding of physics
    *
    losing the sense of it all
    once he closes the book
    *
    coming away with a profound
    uncertainty
    *
    everything’s clear until
    he closes the book
    *
    enjoying a private moment
    with a cosmic joke
    ****

      1. btw
        Two good books on quantum matters:
        The Quantum Moment by Crease and Goldhaber
        and The Perfect Theory by Ferreira. Both clear and fascinating though I still can’t explain any of it once I put the book down.

  69. his time sensitive
    understanding of physics
    *
    losing the sense of it all
    once he closes the book
    *
    coming away with a profound
    uncertainty
    *
    everything’s clear until
    he closes the book
    *
    enjoying a private moment
    with a cosmic joke
    *

  70. wonderful explanation of quarks, thanks
    I needed it
    *
    like charmed quarks
    their relationship
    thrives on give and take
    *
    a lockdown lesson
    in long division

  72. Thank you for taking the time to offer up a helpful study, Autumn. And congrats Clysta. I found the verse delightful.

  73. like charmed quarks
    their relationship
    thrives on give and take
    .
    Clysta Seney
    .
    after the lightning strike
    he become a changed man

  74. like charmed quarks
    their relationship
    thrives on give and take
    *
    Clysta Seney
    *
    seeing one another now
    through reading glasses darkly
    *
    Autumn

    1. The place to post has disappeared into the Quantum realm…thus my posting here below my other post.
      *
      Couldn’t resist (blame Carol, who got me laughing in the first place):
      *
      like charmed quarks
      their relationship
      thrives on give and take
      *
      Clysta Seney
      *
      have you seen the size
      of his Hadron Collider?!
      *
      Autumn

  75. like charmed quarks
    their relationship
    thrives on give and take
    Clysta Seney
    .
    his dropped r sound in all
    his words leaves her in stitches
    .

  76. on knees scrubbing when
    trump muddies the floors

    *

    this is how i feel…..when all these weeks, trying to restrain germs by staying home….not putting anyone at risk…..and now he wants to open up non-essential business.

    1. Get some kneepads, Wendy, and keep scrubbing. If that goes ahead it will be utter madness,
      this is playing Russian roulette with peoples lives.

      1. the bean counter
        kneads the pastry
        for his bean pie
        .
        stuck in chains
        the masochist looks
        for the wiggle room
        .
        He believes he is doing right by his capitalist teachings.
        The economy stops for no human.

        1. rob,
          thank you for sharing, too! i see how “fond” you are, also!
          imho to call him a capitalist is a generous compliment.
          the only teaching i can see that he follow is from sadistic hell dwellers….more like de-capitalists.
          he doesn’t have any helpful education…..even his books were written by ghosts.

      2. i know it is awful! thank you for seeing the issues and talking about it too, carol.

  77. like charmed quarks
    their relationship
    thrives on give and take – Clysta Seney
    .
    three cheers for the emperor
    in invisible clothes
    .

  84. like charmed quarks
    their relationship
    thrives on give and take
    *
    Clysta Seney
    *
    time traveling through
    their faded wedding album
    *
    Autumn

    1. or, if “their” cannot bear repeating:
      *
      time traveling through
      a faded wedding album
      *
      Autumn

  85. during pandemics sirens
    drown out his serenades
    ########
    romanticrenkudisobey
    socialdistancingrules

  86. two morning mantras:

    .
    spinning round & round
    the banana g et a tail

    .
    where do you stand
    on a scale of 1-10

    1. spinning round & round
      the banana gets a tail

      *
      spinning round & round
      the birthday cake gets a tail

  87. like charmed quarks
    their relationship
    thrives on give and take Clysta Seney
    .
    spin doctors talk up
    the lucky country

  89. Congratulations, Clysta!
    .
    * I have to admit that this verse is way over my head even now that I’ve spent some time googling about charm/ed quarks and related. Perhaps is just that it’s early in the morning (here, for me) or perhaps it’s simply that I can’t grasp the “give and take” analogy as applied to charm/ed quarks. Perhaps to some of the participants it’s perfectly clear. But I’m completely in the dark!
    .
    Clysta or Patricia or anyone who understands the analogy, would you please explain the analogy for me? What is it that allows a comparison between a relationship that “thrives on give and take” and “charmed quarks”? Or in what way do “charmed quarks” “thrive on give and take”?
    .
    like charmed quarks
    their relationship
    thrives on give and take Clysta Seney

    1. from the following article:
      *
      Charmed Existence: Mysterious Particles Could Reveal Mysteries of the Big Bang | Live Science
      *
      https://www.livescience.com/59372-charm-quarks-behave-unexpectedly.html
      *
      “Quarks and their antimatter counterparts come in six varieties, known to physicists as “flavors”: up, down, top, bottom, strange and charm. They have different masses; the up and down quarks that make up protons and neutrons are the lightest. Charm quarks are the third heaviest, behind top quarks. They never form in ordinary conditions on Earth; a particle accelerator is necessary to make them.”
      *
      As for the “give and take,” I think Clysta is loosely referring to particle exchange. If you ever want a good grounded read about Quantum Physics, check out Most Wanted Particle: The Inside Story of the Hunt for the Higgs, the Heart of the Future of Physics by Jon Butterworth (who, in addition to grasping Quantum concepts, has the humility and sense of humor to actual explain them to others! Too bad he doesn’t write renku…)
      *
      Hope that helps!
      *
      Autumn

      2. Hey Autumn — the woman with two kigos 😉 Good to see you back.

        Thanks for this deeper spin on physics. Very intriguing. I was writing while you were writing so I just now saw this. Appreciate you weighing in. 😉

        Clysta

      3. Autumn, thanks for trying. I still don’t get it, though. I did find a lot of info about quarks and have now read the particular article you quote from….all interesting, to be sure, but . . .
        .
        It is the “give and take” (attributed, in Clysta’s verse, to the charm quarks) that I don’t get. The secondary statement in the verse ( “their relationship thrives on give and take”) is quite straightforward, as we all have a good general idea of what what “give and take” means within human relationships. However the primary statement upon which this “secondary statement” rests, the one which it’s supposed to be analogous to or with is: ” charm/ed quarks thrive on give and take.”
        .
        I can’t find anything that supports this statement but I’m very curious to find out about it. (“particle exchange” is quite a different thing to an “exchange particle”, it seems. )
        .
        One interesting piece I found:
        https://www.livescience.com/18141-wacky-physics-particle-flavors.html
        But it doesn’t throw any light on the “give and take” attributed to charm/ed quarks or any other quarks.
        .
        I’ve found nothing that seems to relate to quark “give and take”. So I’m still stumped.

        1. Okay, one more somewhat incomprehensible thing that might elucidate “give and take”:
          *
          Quarks always come in pairs. If you try to separate them, the force required to do so generates enough energy that two more quarks come into existence and bond with the original two.
          *
          Think of a strand of elastic–it has two ends (like the paired quarks). If you stretch it far enough and hard enough to break it, each end will generate a new end, and you will now have two pieces of elastic with two ends each (two pairs of two quarks each).
          *
          “Give and take” can imply compromise; but is can also imply the longer phrase–give with one hand while taking with the other. One can try to separate quarks, in an attempt to create two individual quarks. But what happens instead is that one ends up with two pairs of paired quarks instead.
          *
          That, and elastic has give and take. ; )
          *
          Quarks off to Clysta for pulling this complicated quantum concept into a renku verse. It just so happens to be my favorite one so far! And I’m okay if the metaphor requires a little bit of a reach–that just follows the Quantum concept Einstein called “spooky action at a distance.” Think of this verse as “metaphor action at a distance.” 😀
          *
          Autumn

      4. Thanks for that, Autumn.
        I too had to search ‘quarks’ but your explanation is more understandable, though still way over my head 🙂

        1. Thanks for the smile, Carol–I’m giggling at the notion of Quantum Physics being “over our heads.”
          *
          Sometimes renku–like that elastic–is a real stretch!
          *
          Autumn

          1. Let’s just call it a woman thing. For thirty plus years I’ve tried to figure.
            Not sure which side of give and take either of us are on. Especially when you add the snap and more quarks in the middle.
            Great subject and explanation for a great poem.
            Here Clysta is your answer to why it made it to the top.
            So much knowledge squeezed into so few words.

    2. Lorin, The charm quark experiences all four of physics fundamental interactions: gravitation, electromagnetism, weak forces, and strong forces. Some humans describe love as an interaction, an attraction (see movie: Fatal Attraction,) some give it power (Huey Lewis), some an emotion (Tina Turner.) Physics looks into how the universe behaves. Besides matter (our bodies) it looks at energy and force. (love?) Equations add and subtract, multiply and divide: give and take, keeping balance. So, it’s just my very unscientific analogy based on …. the magic of words and imagination.

      1. great going….clysta…..”the magic of words and imagination” does it!!!!!!!!!!!!

      2. Ah, thanks for chiming in Clystra 🙂 …I’ve been quite absorbed in trying to answer my own question. . . unsuccessfully.
        .
        I really cannot say what any kind of quark “experiences” or if they are capable of experiencing anything at all! Certainly they are said to be subject to “forces” of various kinds.
        .

        In your verse you have expressed the claim ” charmed quarks thrive on give and take” and used this claim as the basis for your simile about their relationship.
        .
        Imagination is a great thing. I recall when the term “gluon” was freshly invented & reported and I laughed at the humour of those scientists. 🙂 What better name for something that sticks one thing onto another?
        .
        At least I now understand why I can’t understand your verse. There is a kind of magic in it… a kind of sleight -of-hand sort of magic. Yes, the magic of words.

  91. hanging wisteria
    on the laundry tree

    *
    hanging wisteria
    on the clothes drying twine

    1. my bad….i was trying to avoid flowers, too…..but:

      ,
      after seven blissful years
      our wisteria blossoms

  92. *
    like charmed quarks
    their relationship
    thrives on give and take
    Clysta Seney
    *
    his nonsense rhymes have a core
    of deeper meaning
    *

  93. charmed quark sounds more
    delightful than higgs boson
    ######
    owls sound like they
    are talking to god
    ####%##
    crow perched
    on a roadside white cross
    #########0
    he still remembers the
    BITCH FROM HELL tattoo on her butt

  96. like charmed quarks
    their relationship
    thrives on give and take
    .
    Clysta Seney
    .
    caught in a wake
    his paper boat goes it alone

  98. .
    Excellent, Clysta! I felt sure yours would be chosen. Patricia asked for an imaginative leap, and you nailed it! Being a literal, nearsighted Indiana girl, I’m incapable of such flights, but admire and love them.
    Thank you, Patricia, for mentioning my verses. And we’re off!
    .
    Judt
    .

    2. I’m sure that if I understood it, I’d be able to enjoy and celebrate Clysta’s verse, too, but until someone explains the analogy for me I’m completely in the dark!

  99. *
    surfing the wave
    in a sea of emotions
    *
    *
    their passion reignited
    on borrowed time
    *
    *
    taking a leap
    without a shadow of a doubt
    *
    *
    leaping into the field
    of all possibilities
    *

  100. like charmed quarks
    their relationship
    thrives on give and take
    Clysta Seney
    *
    adapting old family recipes for two
    then for three
    *

  101. like charmed quarks
    their relationship
    thrives on give and take
    .
    Clysta Seney

    *

    the quiet gush
    of h2o

  102. Beautiful, Clysta! And thank you, Patricia for including my verse. I enjoy and continue to learn from all the explanations 🙂

  108. Congrats Clysta, charmed quarks is a magical combination and thank you Patricia, I am glad you appreciated the wildflowers one.

    1. .
      Dan, your beautifully whimsical wildflowers verse is absolutely lovely. What higher compliment could there possibly be?
      Were it not for the proper nouns, I thought this one might well be the chosen verse.
      .
      Judt
      .

  109. Sooooo much fun!
    this renku is looking so gorgeous!
    PERFECT FIT…Patricia!
    *
    Congrats to you, Clysta
    and a perfectly, creative and wise verse for our second love selection:
    *
    like charmed quarks
    their relationship
    thrives on give and take
    .
    Clysta Seney

    1. Thanks Wendy. Your questions have helped me see nuances and many of your offerings (along with Dan’s) bring a smile in these awkward times. And, here we go again….

  110. I love this one, Clysta!
    And thanks, Patricia, for all the work, commentary, and everything else.
    *
    like charmed quarks
    their relationship
    thrives on give and take
    Clysta Seney
    *
    donating duplicate books
    to free little libraries
    *
    or
    filling free little libraries
    with their duplicate books
    *

  111. Thank you Patricia for selecting my offering. Your guidance and lucid explanations of renku have improved my efforts, as have the playful and instructive ‘give and take’ of all the other online poets. , 🙏🏻 to all.

    1. Robert I believed your ‘heart of the tree’ poem was going to be the choice, especially because of earth day. The things we do in the name of love …. I will be thinking about your poem often.

      1. Hi Clysta, as they say, the best verse won the day.
        I actually thought the same of yours. Its quirkiness and finely tuned lines are deserved of its place. Nicely done!

  114. Congratulations, Clysta, an appropriate verse regarding ‘give and take’ a little of that goes a long way, these days.
    Well done.
    .
    Thankyou, Patricia for mentioning my verses, as always, appreciated.
    .
    Good to read you are well, in your corner of the world.

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