Tanka Writing Roundtable • Fall 2011
Dr. Randy Brooks

Summer Moon's Ghost
Selected Tanka

by
Samantha Parks

too hungry
to take another bite
she chews her lip
and swallows
her words instead

racing their walkers
down the hallway to the caf
two old kooks
in love at last . . .
warm chocolate pudding

he sips his coffee
and stares at her skeleton
her swollen belly is gone now
deflated
like rotten fruit

breathing in the starlight
I exhale clouds
and watch them drift away
like daydreams
becoming reality

in the mirror
she shows off her milky thighs.
new heels,
celebrating six months
without your bruises

skipping class to buy
another pack, I think
how slowly this
depression drags me down
                                    . . . I take another

the tip of your nose
covered in kisses
I bathe you in
the sunlight
of mid-morning daydreams

enchanted by
the witch's kiss
he hides his heart
behind a scarecrow's
simple smile

at the forgotten park bench
she holds a tea party
for spiders
                        and squirrels
Peace here.

bisexual
bipolar
our sport is crashing
bicycles
into brick walls