Carpe Diem #748 clouds

Dear Haijin, visitors and travelers,

It's my pleasure to present an all new episode of our "summertime" month in which we are discovering modern kigo for summer as gathered by Jane Reichhold. I am deeply grateful to Jan that she is part of CDHK and that she has granted me permission to use her "A Dictionary of Haiku" and her haiku. Thank you Jane from the bottom of my heart that you have given me that permission. I am just your humble host and I am grateful that I can  and may be your host at CDHK. Thank you all for being part of this haiku loving family.

Today our prompt is clouds and in my humble opinion clouds are the masters of art in nature. As I look at the sky and see all those wonderful clouds than I realize how little I am ... clouds are sharing their art through all different images they create. As I look at today's sky than the clouds are heavy and loaded with rain, but they also grant me an insight in a wonderful fantasy world. I see different animals and landscapes in them .... and my fantasy goes on the run (I don't know if I say that correct).

As I started creating this episode I loved to change our background and that's what I have done. Wonderful clouds are passing by in our background and that makes me happy and I hope you become happy too as you look at the new background of our Haiku Kai. (background image's credits)

In her "A Dictionary of Haiku" Jane share's a wonderful series of haiku on clouds and I just couldn't choose the right one, so I have chosen a few of her "clouds"-haiku to share here for your inspiration.

dancing lights
clouds sprinkle the sun
across water

curving with the land
a rainbow of clouds
moves out to sea

after the rain
breathing deeply
white valley clouds

© Jane Reichhold

Awesome haiku and there are more beauties to share for example these by Basho:

Glorious the moon . . .

therefore our thanks dark clouds
Come to rest our necks

Clouds come from time to time -
and bring to men a chance to rest
from looking at the moon.

© Basho (Tr. Bellenson)

Or these by Kobayashi Issa:

on the river's bank
already it's a moonlit night...
billowing clouds

emerging under
the peaks of clouds...
a little boat

© Issa (Tr. David G. Lanoue, www.haikuguy.com)

All beauties I would say ... how can I possibly compose a haiku (or two) in the same beauty? I think that isn't possible, but ... well you know me .... I had to try. So here are my haiku inspired on clouds.

mysterious clouds
changing images through the wind
ah! what a sight

© Chèvrefeuille

Or this cascading haiku set:

fantasy world unfolds
while the wind tears clouds apart
in sunny colors

in sunny colors
clouds moving, changing everlasting
fantasy world unfolds

© Chèvrefeuille

Ah ... beautiful ... a bit immodest maybe, but I like these haiku a lot .... What do you think of these haiku?

This episode is open for your submissions tonight at 7.00 PM (CET) and will remain open until June 6th at noon (CET). I will (try to) publish our next episode, rain, later on. For now .... have fun!