Somonka

Poem by Prince Felipe of Asturius to Doña Letizia Ortiz

an ocean of black
veiled my heart, pulled at my soul
through drenched nature, you
held tired eyes with compassion-
hope, like springtime, shining down

Poem by Doña Letizia in response

through nature drenched, I
released my being to you
homeland's wounds will heal themselves
in time, our love grows
like sprouts of spring, newly born
I begin life by your side

Author notes

Happy Anniversary, Annie!

This poem is inspired by the meeting of the Prince and Princess of Spain, at the site of the Prestige oil spill on the northern coast in Asturius, Spain, in 2002.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Letizia,_Princess_of_Asturias

I tried a Somonka:

from: www.thepoetsgarret.com/orient.html

Like the Sonnet of English and Italian courtiers during the European Renaissance, the Tanka served as a vehicle for love poetry for Japanese lovers during the five centuries of the Nara and Heian Periods (roughly 600 to 1200 AD).

During this period Tanka became notes exchanged by lovers. On returning home from a tryst the man would immediately sit down and compose a Tanka of gratitude, perhaps commenting upon some specific event that had occurred. The note would then be immediately dispatched to his lover by messenger or servant and his lover would be expected to instantly compose and return a suitable Tanka response, even if that meant arising from sleep. This form of poetry took on the name of Somonka.