An Exchange of Letters

Contemplating cloth
I watch the breeze dance its length
until its stopped by the gate.
I wonder my own
welcome should I ask entrance.

I fear the dragon
lies far too close to your home.
I will not cry welcome sir,
for it will follow.
Tigers are sewn on my sleeves.

Yearning to study
The stitching on your silk sleeves
I beg a stroll by the lake
Perhaps the moonlight
Will turn lapis to emerald.

The lake seems to have
Washed all color from my sleeves
Or did you pluck out the threads
Like you did my heart
When I helped retie your belt.

Lady with silk sleeves
You tied my belt and no one
But you knows the knots you tied
Please visit my camp
To free me from its binding.

Anon and anon,
tents will disappear like dew,
leaving a moment of mist.
Let us melt into
the Dream with a timeless kiss.

by,

Lady Prudence the Curious

Written July 12, 2005

Documentation Note

Written after reading “Only Companion” by Sam Hamill

In Japanese tradition, Tanka were exchanged as love letters. Untieing and references to the sash/belt/obi implied other activity. Gates and other entry matters were often topics of the barriers they presented to star-crossed lovers.