Issue 5 – June 2026 – Tanka Page 5



under the weight of war
a baby’s laughter rises
on a cloudy day
the sunflowers still follow
the path of the sun

Fatma Zohra Habis, Algeria

that day
in the woods
carved
in my mind
so long ago

Jon Hare, USA

talipot palm
millions of blossoms
but once a lifetime
this moment
might be that moment

Dennis Owen Frohlich, USA

have a child
and plant a tree
I did—then what?
the tree must now
be blooming

Emil Karla, France

the bare cottonwood,
twisted and tangled, rises
from a dry creekbed,
brown, heart-shaped leaves litter
this all too familiar path

Jim Chessing, USA

visiting hospital  
with a bunch of violets            
all shades of purple
the deepening bruise  
beneath your swollen eye

Gavin Austin, Australia



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