Totemic Tanka

I thought I would post my totemic tanka poems from last year all in one place, and use this place to resume my poetry (for those who are wondering what totemic tanka poems could possibly be, I introduced my concept in this post from v1.0 of Expanding Inward last year) ….

The graceful beauty,
floating majestically
atop the water -
hauteur fitting like a cloak,
Swan glides and guides between worlds.

Flying and swimming,
walking on Earth with both feet -
you laugh and you cry,
delight when your ship comes in,
Sea Gull – how alike we are!

He looks with one eye,
looks again with his other -
Crow is a keen judge
for he sees first what you are,
and then sees what you might be.

In silence, Spider,
you spin such a subtle web -
splendor and beauty
for those who see your patterns,
misfortune for those who don’t.

Rebel and robber,
Raven cartwheels in the wind -
the sable prince of clowns,
as sly as he is hungry,
plays life’s games by his own rules.

The frozen wind howls
across the wintry landscape,
while the mighty Grizzly
slumbers, deep within the Earth,
contented to dream ’till Spring.

The Alligator
smiles, a crooked, toothy grin -
ancient confidence
in his murky pool, he knows
that his food will come to him.

Laughing and dancing,
Coyote roams, free as air -
craftier than all,
he is his only rival,
often his only victim.

As agile in mind
as she is deft on her feet -
the clever Fox hunts,
a mixture of stealth and speed
propelled by a daring heart.

With his belly full,
the Possum hangs by his tail -
living by dying,
he’s successful because he
is underestimated.

Flying silently,
confident when dark prevails -
Owl is the nightmare
of those who use the twilight
to conceal their furtive ways.

A haunting chorus
drifts beneath a bulging moon -
gathered are the Wolves
along the mountain summits,
singing Nature’s mysteries.

Flying through the night,
its screams echo in silence -
seeing the unseen
in spite of its struggling eyes,
Bat’s vision leaves us wanting.

With unmatched fury
and grim determination,
Badger instructs
yet another young Bear in
the finer points of respect.

Heedless of danger,
moving boldly through the woods -
content and thoughtful
having neither friend nor foe,
few will play with Porcupine.

- Aonghas Wildes (aka Bernulf Oswin), 2006-2007