Issue 1 - June 2025 - Editor's choice

monarchs -
may they sail aloft
on trailing winds
far above borders
and would-be kings

Curt Pawlisch, USA

I would like to begin by commenting line by line and then look at the poem as a whole.

Line 1 presents a single word with some ambiguity to its meaning. The reader, if familiar with tanka and similar poetry, probably imagines butterflies, but will also be aware of the alternative meaning of kings.
Line 2 reinforces the butterfly meaning and elevates the image, encouraging us to look up, bringing in a vertical dimension.
Line 3 is a subtle pivot line, linking above and below. It reminds us of the natural forces that help shape events. For both butterflies and humans, much depends on which way the wind is blowing!
Line 4 draws our focus down to the grubby mundane world of people and politics.
Line 5 makes the alternative meaning of monarchs explicit, resolving what was foreshadowed in line 1 in a way I find very satisfying.

There is balance here between the higher realm, the ephemeral beauty of butterflies and the natural force of wind, in contrast to the down-to-earth, hard power of rulers and borders. Or, to look at it another way, the temporary power of mortal men contrasted with the butterflies that sail for all time blithely over such lines in the sand. 

This poem could have been written at any point in human history. Those butterflies could be sailing high above the Roman Empire or Edo Period Japan, but it could also be a comment on current events. The author does not intrude or state an overt opinion but something is implied in the encouraging phrase 'may they sail' rather than a neutral 'they sail' and in the reference to 'would-be' rather than actual, rightful kings. 

This much analysis is, of course, entirely unnecessary, the poem works perfectly well without any such nonsense. This sort of thing certainly should have no place in a writer's mind when writing. I just sometimes enjoy examining a poem and finding out why it works well for me. I hope Curt will forgive me for putting his butterfly under the microscope. 

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