Tanka No. 1 (Spring)

myriad birds perching
       in radiant hues celestial —
              whistling in the leaves
the melancholic music
       of the old depressed flautist

Tanka No. 2 (Summer)

burrowing hornets
       emerge in heated morning —
              the shedding of tears
from humankind to nature
       constantly warring factions

Tanka No. 3 (Autumn)

the loosening leaves
       in an evening force of gust —
              beneath the full moon
darkening chills overcome
       the wanderer in the woods

Tanka No. 4 (Winter)

once frost-bitten wings
       on lethal birds of the skies —
              becoming carrion
in the silence of their peace
       ravaged by hunger and plight