Red Sky
Robert Hecht
 

Late fall, camping at Cultus Lake in Oregon. One of our good trips, only an occasional thundersquall between us—the honeymoon phase of what will be a tumultuous ten-year marriage.

This morning she awakens me early, manic, saying I must get up now and come see the sunrise. Dressing quickly, I grab my camera and tripod and walk the rocky shoreline to a good vantage point. In the chilly dawn air, pink fog hovers above the lake and piles up on the foothills. The mountain peak rises beyond. A deadwood snag in the water provides a strong visual element, and I make a black and white photograph that feels good.

A year later the framed print of Cultus Lake hangs on our dining room wall; it's one of my favorites, though she has complained that as a monochrome it fails to capture the feeling of the original scene. During an alcohol-fueled argument she hurls a glass of wine at my head. I duck and it smashes into the photograph, breaking the glass. Burgundy mixes with fog and turns it pink again.

weekend dad
sunset hugs
that need to last

Robert Hecht was first exposed to haiku back in the late 60s, with Dharma Bums, and R.H. Blyth's books. He dabbled in writing haiku at that time, but did not turn to it seriously until last year. He earns his living as a writer-producer-director of educational video and multimedia programs. He and his wife work together running their own business, On Point Productions, in San Rafael, California.

Robert is also a fine art photographer. His work has been exhibited both in the USA and abroad and has been published in numerous photography periodicals. His haibun and haiku have been published or are forthcoming in Contemporary Haibun Online, Modern Haiku, The Heron's Nest, Frogpond, bottle rockets, Roadrunner Haiku, and Big Sky: The Red Moon Anthology of English Language Haiku 2006.

Copyright 2007: Simply Haiku