En Plein Air- an Ekphrastic Haibun, by Angelee Deodhar

Wheatstacks, End of Summer, by Claude Monet (France), 1890-1891.

En Plein Air- an Ekphrastic Haibun

​The morning chill steeps into my tea, hands cupping the bowl slowly start to warm, but my toes are still freezing. In this predawn quiet along with the muzzein’s litany I hear a crow call, then another and still another while an all enveloping opalescent mist rises beyond the widow makers.

In the harvested field I see a haystack with its belly open, excavated, hollow.

I am reminded of the 25 canvases of ‘Haystacks’ painted by Claude Monet in Giverny to show the difference of light in various seasons. The one that attracts me most is "Wheatstacks (End of Summer)." It was one of the paintings discussed by the docent on our free Seniors Art Tour Day at the Art Institute of Chicago. Monet’s genius with the subtle colours displayed there are the same as those I now see in India.

Then Van Gogh’s last painting "Wheat Fields with Crows," also painted in 1890, comes to mind and a deep desolation engulfs me.  I look at the dark lowering sky with crows over a wind-whipped wheat field. I wonder what angst drove him to shoot himself that day.

It is time for the Shradh to begin. For the next two weeks we will fast, pray and give offerings to the Brahmins, birds and animals in their name, seek blessings from our ancient ones. This year, I will add Monet and Van Gogh to my list of souls.

autumn equinox –
above the lightening
the last koel’s song

Angelee Deodhar

Poet's Note: Shradh is one of the most significant times to remember our ancestors and pray for the departed souls to rest in peace.

This haibun was first published at Nature Writing.

Dr. Ms Angelee Deodhar is an eye surgeon by profession as well as a haiku poet, translator, and artist. She lives and works in, Chandigarh  India. Her haiku, haibun and haiga have been published internationally in various books and journals, and her work can be viewed on many websites.

Wheat Field with Crows, by Vincent Van Gogh (Netherlands), 1890.