Neal
Henry Lawrence Day 2012
Today
is November 3rd, Neal Henry Lawrence Day. Lawrence (January 22, 1908 to November 3, 2004), in the last phase of his long and
varied life, lived in Japan as a member, a Priest, in the Order of Saint
Benedict. He lived in Tokyo during this period
and that is where Father Lawrence learned about Tanka.
Father
Lawrence was the first to produce a significant body of English language Tanka
following the traditional syllabic construction of five lines in
5-7-5-7-7. His work is, therefore,
groundbreaking. It is also well
crafted. English language Tanka poets can learn much from reading his works.
I
think of Neal Henry Lawrence as the Patron Saint of English Language
Tanka. Here is one from his second book,
‘Rushing Amid Tears’:
Yellow
as old lace
On
my grandmother’s treasured
Wedding
dress of silk.
The
aging gardenia
Floated
in the dark blue bowl.
Today
would be a good day to compose a formal Tanka, using the Tanka recipe of
5-7-5-7-7 syllables; a recipe which has been used for over 1400 years.
For
those interested in reading a little about Brother Lawrence, Saint John’s Abby
has a page about him:
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