Nostalgic picnics on the weekend with the family. Mum packed the food; in a rattan hamper, lined with a satiny blue cloth, it had special compartments and loops for plates and cutlery. Dad drove the car; heading to the beach or waterfalls, a picnic was not complete without that hamper.

breeze-kissed youthful skin

touching the sky with memories

sighing on green grass

 

Our theme for this week’s haibun is picnic!  Share with us a memory from a picnic – your haibun must not be fictional but a real experience!

A picnic does not have to be only outdoors, my kids and I have had indoor picnics on rainy days, when blankets became soft grass, when we ate sandwiches for dinner and drank sweet fizzy drinks to wash down crisps and cookies, picnic food eaten indoors, picnic style! We’d lie on the floor looking up at the ceiling and describe clouds and kites flying overhead. We’d imagine the scent of flowers and sounds of children playing.

A picnic could also be a meal taken outside when the weather is at its most glorious for you, like it may be now, as spring is in full bloom. Some like it on a sunny winter’s day, some like it on a warm summer lunch hour or maybe autumn is when you want to eat as you watch leaves take on a different colour.

Traditional or breaking all the rules, happy or sad, tell us about a memorable picnic.

For some a picnic may not have been associated with good memories, as Thomas Hardy wrote in his poem – “Where the Picnic Was” – yet it still made a statement.

Maybe you had a hilarious picnic experience; we’d love to hear about that too!

I share some picnic themed poems as inspiration.

The Picnic – Dorothy Aldis 

We brought a rug for sitting on,
Our lunch was in a box.
The sand was warm. We didn’t wear
Hats or shoes or socks.

Waves came curling up the beach.
We waded. It was fun.
Our sandwiches were different kinds.
I dropped my jelly one.

A Lovely Picnic With Friends – Marilyn Lott 

Oh what a lovely day it was
The weather warm and sweet
Packed with friends we cherish
No better folks could you meet

We barbequed dogs on the grill
Out in the bright sunshine
Enjoying the open sky to eat
A meal that was truly fine

Burgers too were grilled just right
Topped with onions and stuff
Just simple tasty scrumptious food
Without a lot of unnecessary fluff

Deviled eggs so perfectly made
With a sprinkle of paprika on top
A delicious blend of flavors
That really truly hit the spot

It was a day we will remember
Good food, good friends together
Can’t ask for a more relaxing time
With the gift of perfect fall weather!

Where the Picnic Was by Thomas Hardy

Where we made the fire,
In the summer time,
Of branch and briar
On the hill to the sea
I slowly climb
Through winter mire,
And scan and trace
The forsaken place
Quite readily.

Now a cold wind blows,
And the grass is gray,
But the spot still shows
As a burnt circle–aye,
And stick-ends, charred,
Still strew the sward
Whereon I stand,
Last relic of the band
Who came that day!

Yes, I am here
Just as last year,
And the sea breathes brine
From its strange straight line
Up hither, the same
As when we four came.
–But two have wandered far
From this grassy rise
Into urban roar
Where no picnics are,
And one–has shut her eyes

Write a haibun based on the prompt, with 1 to 2 tight paragraphs, ending with a seasonal haiku. Bring the season indoors or take yourselves outdoors; however you choose, the haiku should have a seasonal reference.

Then….:

• Post your haibun to your blog
• Add a link (direct URL address) of your poem via the ‘Mr Linky’ below
• Add the link for the dVerse posting so others can find their way here
• Read and comment on other people’s work to let them know it’s being read
• Most importantly, have fun!

See you at the poetry trail ….  Gina