ma neebor
flittin -
weet derns's watshod een




my neighbour
moving away -
rain hiding his tears

new puppies
govein aw airts:
dumfoonert




new poppies
gazing in all directions :
astounded

in the troke
a fryin pan -
sinlicht spreidin




in the trash
a frying pan -
sunlight spreading

amang the grummel
pish-the-beds:
thair heids blawn aff




among the rubble
dandelions:
their heads blown off

the sauch's refleckshun
raxes up:
...cannae...haily...win at...




the willow's reflection
stretches up:
...can't...quite...reach...

furst sake -
Santoka's haiku
soom by




first sake -
Santoka's haiku
swim past

mappie
dernin i the girse -
his lang lugs




rabbit
hiding in the grass -
his long ears

bawdrons streekit
on the hap -
yin splatch o sinlicht




cat stretched
on the quilt -
one patch of sunlight

licht throuch
the gean orchard -
luvers beamin




light through
the cherry orchard -
lovers blushing

in the nest's derk bowlie:
a sheddae
cleckin a sang-burd




in the nest's dark bowl:
a shadow
hatching a song-bird

bairn's graveyaird -
teddies an skailt wheerums
quat




children's graveyard -
teddies and scattered toys
left

a heidless doo -
gean flourish
slawly yirdin it




a headless pigeon -
cherry blossom
slowly burying it

throuch the blawort
bawdrons' bell
plinkin




through the bluebells
cat's bell
tinkling

on the claddach
yestreen's squeak:
lassie in a dookin ootrig




on the riverbed
yesterday's newspaper:
girl in a bathing costume

aneath the sotter
o deuks matin -
the quate burn




beneath the chaos
of ducks mating -
the silent stream

backlans wrackt -
a fou muin
leukin sae bricht




ghettos demolished -
a full moon
looking so bright

fou muin -
on the derk watter
a swan




full moon -
on the dark river
a swan

a fedder blaws
throuch the gairden -
she greits fir'r tint bairn




a feather blows
through the garden -
she cries for her lost child

flee draps on the page:
its unco sheddae
wycelik wi the japanese




fly drops on the page:
its strange shadow
fitting with the japanese

sookin'r bairn -
in the lift
a lang fite contrail




breast-feeding her child -
in the sky
a long white contrail

flourishins in's pooch:
the bodach
ettles tae mind...




blossoms in his pocket:
the old man
tries to remember...

zen gairden:
sumyin's fuitprents
athort the watter




zen garden:
someone's footprints
across the water

throuch faw'n flourishins:
peerie brides
mak thair wey tae scuil




through falling blossoms:
tiny brides
make their way to school

the sin's raik
het on the airn bink:
a bodach rists




the sun's journey
hot on the iron bench:
an old man rests

at the en
o a siller steid:
snail dramein




at the end
of a silver trail:
snail dreaming

throuch the perk:
buits jowelt
wi gean flourish




through the park:
boots jewelled
with cherry blossom

heronious traffeck -
dubs lowp sidelins,
clap tae throu-gaun fowk




outrageous traffic -
puddles leap aside,
cling to passers-by

simmer burn -
bairns' nebs
boabbin amang the deuks




summer stream -
childrens' faces
bobbing amongst the ducks

a'where
petals waffin -
butterie leuks deezie




everywhere
petals waving -
butterfly looks dizzy

reid-tapt aipple flourish -
bummer veesits the
hoose o a thoosan preeins




red-tipped apple blossom -
bee visits the
house of a thousand kisses

keek o day
the easin
...a spreidin smirk




sunrise
the horizon
...a spreading smile

sic blitheness
gean flourish sweelin:
yin gits a hurl on a dug's neb




such joy
cherry blossom swirling:
one rides on a dog's nose

thunner an lichtnin -
a blin chiel
fite steek chappin the yirth




thunder and lightning -
a blind man
white stick tapping the earth

skirls o delicht -
mither's umberellae's
cum a fleein draigon




screams of delight -
mother's umbrella's
become a kite

a faw'n
magnolia petal -
a haunfae o weet




a fallen
magnolia petal -
a handful of rain

shofokuji tempel
speuggies daff i the stour:
the day's preachin




shofokuji temple
sparrows play in the dust:
today's sermon


(Japan's first Zen temple)

japanese tae-hoose -
a rose
foondert on'ts breers




japanese tea-house -
a rose
collapsed on its thorns

a lanely tempel -
koi gaither at the brig
apen- mou'd




a lonely temple -
koi gather at the bridge
open-mouthed

origami cless -
sin throuch the winnock
unfaulds a tulip




origami class -
sun through the window
unfolds a tulip

mither's hauns
yirdit i the yirth -
her gean flourishin




mother's hands
buried in the earth -
her cherry tree blossoming