Delicate Paintings of Edo Japan by Royal Rhodes

floating curls of clouds

move like impermanent waves

stretched out on a fan

ink darkens petals

bleeding from one to the next

pulled by water drops

here on small islands

no point is far from the sea

that contains all things

quick strokes of a brush

leave backgrounds mainly empty

that showcase blossoms

painting creates worlds

butterflies dance between buds

safe in our absence

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Royal Rhodes taught global religions, religion & the arts, and death & dying for 40 years. His poems have appeared in print and online, as well as in collaborations with The Catbird [on the Yadkin] Press in North Carolina. His current project is an exhibition: The Art of Trees.