The Crane fights the Crab

A rustle of wings,
The swift diving kingfisher,
Cracks shells on the beach.

A waka I wrote for an RPG

 I play a game called Legend of the Five Rings, wherein one assumes the role of a magical samurai. Unlike other role-playing games, where the object is to smash and grab all the treasure in a dungeon, L5R requires its players to dip into the artistic every so often, and thus, I wrote this for my last session, when my character visited a court session. It is a form of waka known as the tanka.

The sword in my hand,
It calms the beat of my heart,
The Wall, it still stands


My destiny is fulfilled,
My child carries my soul on.