The Creator precisely designs and tunes the cosmos so that twice yearly the plane of the earth’s equator bisects the sun which means day and night are in perfect balance. The solar system moves with exact timing, aligned in an intricate celestial dance.
At county fair, teams of horses pull wagons in outdoor arena. Harnessed together, two powerful animals work together in perfect harmony. A white and black team, Daisy & Midnight, are trained to trot around ring in rhythmic synchronization, bells jingling.
Sun and moon mark time on earth, ushering in four seasons in turn. As plants soak in every available ray of sun, equinox signals leaves to bud with new life or dry to die; coloring our world. Our lives cycle through the months, years and seasons.
Here I use a haiku by Chevrefeuille to create a “troiku” which is a unique form invented by our host at Carpe Diem Haiku Kai. Like a Russian troika, the original haiku is the “sleigh” pulled by the 3 “horses”/haiku verses.
How are we wandering Americans to know it’s Canada’s provincial parks camping weekend? Of course, all campgrounds from Jasper to Banff are overflowing so we drive on. Sun is setting low over the pass when we find a lonely parking lot near trailhead where we can park our pickup camper for the night. Tired of riding, we decide to check out the trail as dusk settles on forest.
Light fades fast in the high country, exaggerating shapes and shadows. Full skirts of fir trees appear as dark illustrations straight from the Brothers Grimm. My apprehension only serves to amplify the crunch of pine needles and sounds of skittering. We meet last pair of hikers coming back down trail and I note they have walking sticks equipped with bear bells.
night envelops trees
alpine woods bathed in shadow
autumn falls early
Poets at dVerse are writing haibuns and “forest bathing” this week!
a poem in my pocket 
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