Tanka - not part of the challenge

But only because I prefer not to count anything I write in response to someone else's poem as part of the challenge.

Whispered friendly words Drift like mist through a forest, Causing one to smile. As one journeys from the cave, To rejoice in bright kindness...      ----Date Saburou Yukiie

After long silence,
A long hoped for message comes,
Brightening the day.
The mountain passes open:
It is truly spring at last.

For those not in the know, this gentleman and I began trading poetry back in 2004. At some point, it turned into an "courtship" between our two personae. He's been out of the game for a bit, then we reconnected recently on Facebook. Today he popped up on the Tousando. Yep. I missed the big lug.

Tanka challenge 4/18/12

While I sat reading,
Birdsong ceased and the skylight
Went dark above me.
High time to leave the world
Inside that book for this one.