Page 25 - Tạp chí bonsai cây cảnh BCI 2015Q2

form even though at the age of seven I had no idea that worn wooden and stone bridges, to dilapidated old
people so far away had been collecting and admiring huts, and even representations of human figures. Each
stones for centuries. stone in our collection can easily be held in our hands,
Growing older, I have come to appreciate many we can feel and inspect its surface and its shape. But
small things—from the beauty of a single piece of su- it only starts there. The true beauty is when the stone
shi so carefully and creatively constructed—to the love captures our imagination and takes us on a mind’s
of Japanese Haiku poetry and those writers who have journey to those once visited faraway places. It is at
excelled in expressing in a short 17-syllable poem such that moment we experience a profound sense of inti-
grand ideals. For example, short Haiku poem by Yosa macy, solitude, and serenity.
Buson (1716 - 1783), a Haiku poet and painter of the For a few moments, KJ, my wife, and I would like to
middle Edo period who was born in Settsu (Osaka): share a few stones from our personal collection. We
will associate the suiseki classification for each of our
In the night of the winter moon stones as many of the stones are from Japan; however,
Small stones in our collection we have stones from Italy, China, and
Touch the bottom of my shoes throughout the Western United States. Let’s start with
mountain stones prevalent in so many collections in-
For those of you who personally collect stones, cluding ours.
whether directly by roaming through river beds and
streams or by purchasing them, you have experienced Mountain ranges are present in almost every
how difficult it is to find a great stone of any size. This country. We see in our small stones mountain ranges
is exacerbated even more so when attempting to find reminiscent of those we have visited in the United
a suiseki or high-quality viewing stone of so small a States, Japan, and China.
stature. The majority of our small stones in our collec- Figure 1 is a distant mountain stone with at least
tion are under 20 cm, or approximately 8 inches, and seven peaks of varying heights. It is well balanced and Bottom; Figure 1 – Distant
they bring to mind many things we experience and visually very appealing. One can imagine seeing this Mountain Stone; Japan;
treasure in nature and life: from far-away mountain type of mountain range in numerous countries. 13 x 5 x 9 cm
ranges or peaks, to thundering waterfalls, to heavily

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