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Mark Gilbert

sea-level

Cable Hut is a tiny cottage perched on the coastal footpath in the westernmost tip of Wales. Now rented out to holiday makers, it was originally the base for the laying of the first transatlantic telegraph cable. It is just about big enough for two, as long as they are compatible.

On this calm morning there is a sharp interface at the horizon, distinguishing the blush of the sky from the slate of the sea, a quivering hump of fluid held rigid by gravity’s tether. The earth’s curvature is marked by that line.

crabpots
pulled onto a fishing boat
a fanclub of gulls

A dangerous black-brown bird tears over the sea the coastline the fields — propelled by some smooth silent force it screams and is gone, filling the empty sky with a tremulous roar.

jet fighter
the delay between action
and consequence

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Note: The haiku “jet fighter” was previously published separately in the British Haiku Society’s journal Blithe Spirit, volume 20/3 (September 2010). 

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About the Author

Mark Gilbert has been enjoying writing haibun for 15 years. Examples of his work may be found in the journals Haibun Today, Human/Kind, and contemporary haibun online.