fandomhigh | The Art of Haiku; Monday, Second Period [07/11].

Shunsui had considered calling off the class for the day, in light of an invitation from Rangiku-chan and Shūhei to see how many other Shinigami they could rouse up and drag out for drinks to celebrate his birthday properly, but that was for later, and still holding the lesson could be a nice, easy thing to gesture to should anyone (Nanao-chan) suggest any slacking off on his part. In fact, he could even make the argument that he'd held his class even though it was his birthday! Clearly, he deserved to let loose a little.

After thousands of years, Shunsui honestly didn't even care that it was his birthday, but he most certainly did care if it meant going out and drinking with some of his favorite fellow captains and lieutenants. And it certainly gave him a little something to look forward to. But, for now, with a clear sky and a pleasant morning in front of them, they'd be gathered again under the tree by the duck pond, ready to talk more about poetry.

Especially since today's lesson didn't exactly require...much.

(Most of them didn't, really).

"Ohayōgozaimasu, ducklings ♥!" Greeting them, of course, with his usual lazy, half-asleep sort of smile. "And welcome back ♥. If you'll recall, last week I tasked you all with an assignment,, to find a haiku to share with the rest of the class, so let us not waste any further time and get right to the reason we are here today ♥. Please, share your poem and why you picked it and we'll discuss its merits and faults a little before spending the rest of the time hoping the Muse graces us with her presence once more with a little more writing of our own ♥.

"Who would like to go first ♥?"

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Simple and sweet.

Josephine Jones

Graham Cracker

Ghanima Atreides

Clare Devlin

Did you manage to find a haiku that you liked to share with the class today? If so, do so now, and everyone can discuss their own thoughts on it!

And if not? That is fine, too! Honestly, it's kind of a miracle that Shunsui even remembered that there'd been homework!

"....ah, zards," said Graham, who did not use that word lightly! "I knew I forgot something!"

You'd think going to poetry class would have jogged something in his mind about needing a poem for today's lesson, but he'd been busy! His mind had been on other things!

But, despite these facts, and the fact that he'd just admitted he'd forgotten a poem, his tried to think quick to see if he could just make one up on the fly, and no one would be any wiser.

"Errm, I mean, that is...I brought with me....this poem. In my head. By, uhhh, a great poet from Serenia named, uhhhh....Bob. That's right. Bob the Poet. From Serenia. Very popular guy, a bit underground, you know, but he does pretty good for himself!"

Boy, he hoped no one bothered to follow up on that.

"Anyway! The poem goes...erm....like this...."

Graham cleared his throat, got his fingers ready.

"Wetzel wolves come and...

"Um...

"GO, with the changing of the--

"Wait. No...

"go, with the changing SEASON
I....miss....their...HOLWLING!

"Yes, that's it! Wetzel wolves come and/Go with the changing season/I miss their howling. Very well known, celebrated Serenian haiku by the infamous Bob the Poet!"

He bowed.

"Thank you."

Edited 2022-07-11 09:02 (UTC)

Shunsui was getting exhausted just watching Graham try to work his way through that, but was almost too curious to stop it. He wanted to say he almost admired the effort, but effort was hardly something he would ever feel compelled to admire at all, really.

"Bob the Poet, was it?" he asked, once Graham was finished, with a faint chuckle. "Can't say I've had the pleasure ♥. All the more reason to be grateful that you chose to share it with us today, Graham-kun. I particularly admire how it seems to suggest a passage of time so simply, and the changes that may effect us with them so effectively ♥."

“I found a haiku called the old pond? Er… it’s by um ....Matsuo Bashō?” she tried, it had happened to be be the first one that Jo had come across in her search and she liked the sound of it enough, she didn’t realise just how well known of a haiku it actually was.

There was another awkward pause and she stammered through her reading, An old silent pond... A frog jumps into the pond, splash! Silence again.

It was rare that Shunsui found himself feeling the need to restrain one of his smirks, but, in this instance, he was doing just that, although it was mostly in an attempt to cover his amusement with something a bit softer. "Ah, yes ♥," he said. "You can do far worse than to turn to a master such as Bashō in matters such as these ♥. His is a name we will be hearing quite often in the next few weeks, as he has been incredibly influential in the Art of Haiku, Jo-chan ♥. And I certainly believe I have heard this one before...."

As a matter of fact, he had started last week's lesson with it, albeit with a slightly different, in his opinion far more poetic translation. But he was hardly going to point that out.

"Not to mention," he added, instead, "wonderfully fitting for our location ♥! Perhaps we should take a moment to just settle in and be quiet and listen for the splash of a frog ourselves, neh ♥?"

Jo had thought it was nice enough that it had needed repeating twice? ~~and she also has a mun who has a really bad memory - oops, sorry!~~

She did smile at that, unaware of any kind of error on her part “I would like that,” she said, “it does sound peaceful,”

Edited 2022-07-11 09:30 (UTC)

It was honestly an incredibly realistic and honestly somewhat charming mistake to have made, though. After all, who could remember just one fleeting poem in a whole week's worth of other things far more engaging and interesting? And at least she'd actually remembered to bring a poem...

Were he the type to put in a little more effort, Shunsui could have used that to springboard into a lesson about the fine art of translation, but of course he wasn't going to do that when he could just be listening for frogs.

"It certainly does ♥," he agreed, and then, with a grin and a lift of both his chin and his hand, he then smoothed out his hand and closed his eyes and breathed out as if to lead the way in just taking a moment to pause and listen for the frogs.

Maybe long enough to sneak in the briefest of naps between now and the next person to go....

"And now we have the rest of our time together to brush up," pun not actually intended, but a solid one regardless, "on some of our writing ♥."

He waved at the calligraphy brushes and parchment or more modern pens and paper set out before him.

"And since nature is a key element to a proper haiku, let us focus today on something about the park itself, our lovely setting, perhaps the ducks and the flamingos or the trees and their cooling shade ♥. Perhaps one of the poems brought in by another has inspired you as well ♥. Feel free to share if you like, but, of course, it's not required. I do ask that you at least enjoy yourself, though ♥."

Well, technically speaking, Graham already had made up a new poem that morning, but he couldn't admit that since he'd claimed it was the work of someone else, so it was time to wrack his brain to think of a new one, this time about the park, and he contemplated his options and tried stringing syllables together as he looked around for inspiration.

All the while tapping his calligraphy brush against his chin thoughtfully.

With the brush side.

Which he'd definitely already dipped in ink in preparation.

Whoops.

Alcohol does come from a plant, so, technically speaking, if any of Shunsui's poems today turn out to be odes to sake, they are still about nature, right?

I am thinking about this a totally normal amount.

The Art of Haiku; Monday, Second Period [07/11].

Sign In - AoH, 07/11.

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Share your Haiku - AoH, 07/11.

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Write some Haiku - AoH, 07/11.

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Talk to the Teacher - AoH, 07/11.

OOC - AoH, 07/11.