The sea was writhing at Seahouses. Northumbria wild, voices calling on the wind blown from Hyperborean reaches.
And then you — your skin grey like a seal, matching your eyes, a lantern jaw jutting out like a promontory, unyielding.
So then why are you so kind? Because you are blind, like nature, the tempestuous oceans thrusting, reaching, for just one fleeting sight of your son.
Who brought me this far?
Providence cannot explain
Winter’s existence
Copyright Francis 2020
The Elloe Recorder 
I really miss the real sea. I used to live on the west coast and now we are at the baltic sea, which is rarely wild enough for me.
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I like this. It’s massive, monumental, like a whale. It ought to be terrifying and chilling, but it isn’t it’s a paean to the force of nature, outside our little definitions of comfort;
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Thank you, your analysis is profound!
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I spent many a summer in Bamburgh and Seahouses – you’ve evoked memories for me of times when the sea was wild. Thank you!
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It’s what your words brought to mind. That and my mental image of a winter ocean.
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And thank you 🙏🏻
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Either way you put it better than I could, thank you 🙏🏻
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“So then why are you so kind? Because you are blind, like nature, the tempestuous oceans thrusting, reaching, for just one fleeting sight of your son.”
WOW. This is incredible writing.
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I’ve heard about the writhing sea along the Northumbrian coast, Francis, and I would love to visit it when the pandemic is over. Your haibun is deeply personal, and I’m drawn to the story behind the person with ‘skin grey like a seal’ and ‘a lantern jaw jutting out like a promontory’, and so kind. I want to know more.
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There’s something thrilling and mesmerizing about a wild sea–especially in winter.
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Thank you, Kim. My grandma was from Northumberland, had grey eyes, a pale skin, a lantern jaw… and was blind when I knew her. Later I visited Seahouses, witnessing the stormy seas, so atmospheric. The rest is licence. Thank you.
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You are very kind, thank you 🙏
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Thank you 🙏
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You’re welcome!
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Different ways of saying the same thing, one poetic, one prosaic 🙂
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Such a spirited and deeply personal haibun romp, I really enjoyed the ride. Thanks for revealing your blind grandmother, for it fills in the mystery between the lines. I thought, at first, the storm was “Isabella”.
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Indeed.
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Thank you 🙏
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Spoken with a love of the sea. Beautiful.
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That is a raging sea! I can feel it throughout your Haibun. You Haiku sums up the feelings so well! Leaving unanswered questions!
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Thank you
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thank you
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your imagery paints the sea at her most tumultuous …
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I could just feel the gust of wind, the splash of water. This was vivid!
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I miss the sea,the wildness as well as the kindness.
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This is exquisitely drawn! 😀 Your haibun makes me yearn to visit the ocean.
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Thank you 🙏
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