Moon viewing poems

     Do excuse my less than erudite post here. Others such as the author/ringleader of the Haiku Bandit Society may very well know more of the moon viewing tradition than I. Indeed he regularly holds a highly successful 'online' moon viewing party where haiku poets submit their haiku upon viewing the most recent full moon. Do indeed check out his blog.

     Online one may find many pictures of Edo era moon viewing parties. Kangetsu is the Japanese word for these such parties. Ukiyo-e prints a plenty celebrating the moon and these such viewing parties may be found at the Japanese Woodblock Print Gallery. Two of the below were found there :

Artist: Kobayashi Kiyochika

Title: A Hundred Views of Musashi: Moon Beyond Shinagawa

Artist: Kitao Shigemasa

Title: Autumn Moon at Ishiyama Temple (Ishiyama shûgetsu), from an untitled series of Eight Views of Ômi (Ômi hakkei)

The O-Tsukimi Chakai (Moon Viewing Tea Ceremony) is a traditional Japanese festival which honors the full moon in autumn at the end of September. My wife and I are busy preparing to do one such tea ceremony this September for friends. This summer we shall purchase the proper candle holders.

     As of this night I have written a few moon viewing poems upon doing a brief tea ceremony and then mellowing out with a Korean decaffeinated magnolia tea from OSulloc. I've posted two of them below. Enjoy.
~~
stressful office hours
long rivers of red tail lights
black sky only moon
--MWT.
 ~~
in the sky above
night time tea ceremony
a white peach mochi
 --MWT.