Thursday, 30 April 2026

A Haibun For National Poetry Month


In 2008, our Michelangelo Road Tour took us to Carrara, Italy, where Michelangelo obtained the purest white marble for his sculpted Renaissance masterpieces. We were astonished to see that all the street curbs in that Tuscan mountain town were made of marble. And every doorstep was made of marble too, no matter how humble or impoverished the abode. But then again, why shouldn't the world's finest marble be used for such prosaic purposes? In Carrara, marble is as common as dirt.

Doorstep or David,
it's all the same
to marble mountains


[Haibun © Debra She Who Seeks, 2026;
Photo © Debra She Who Seeks, 2008;
Animated AI GIF courtesy of the internet]

31 comments:

Cleora Borealis said...

🤯😱 Wowser! Nothin' creepier than a 17-foot tall, 6 ton naked guy following my every move; stalking me with his eyes!! 👀😬😘

Ms. Moon said...

When I saw the David, I just burst into tears. I suppose mountains don't care about that either.

whkattk said...

OMG. I just KNEW that GIF was from the Pageant of the Masters in Laguna Beach, CA. Ya fooled me. Ya fooled me good! 😁

Mr. Shife said...

What a perfect way to close out National Poetry Month, Debra. There’s something so poetic about using the world’s finest marble for something as 'prosaic' as a doorstep.

Tundra Bunny said...

Lookout,
he's got a sling-shot
and he's gonna use it!

RedPat said...

It is good that people get to use the local product, Debra.

Spare Parts and Pics said...

That's interesting. And the animation is kinda creepy!

Duni said...

Marble doorsteps! What a memorable trip you've had!

Jamie Ghione said...

I agree that the animation is a bit creepy!

Parnassus said...

Hello Debra, At first I thought that was some mountain in Canada covered with snow. Local use of stone is not surprising. The famous Berea Sandstone from the Cleveland area was exported all over (including for use in the Canada Parliament building in Ottawa), as well as considered the best material for millstones and grindstones, but locally it was used for breakwalls in Lake Erie.
--Jim

DVArtist said...

Very memorable trip. That animation is truly amazing.

Sixpence Notthewiser said...

Ohhhh
Carrara is definitely in my bucket list!
And I’ll add to that going to take a look at Michelangelo’s David.

XOXO

Mary Kirkland said...

The animation is fun.

Kathy G said...

I had to figure out what a haibun was, but based on the definition I think you nailed it.

e said...

I love that the town is built on their local resource! Why not marble doorsteps and curbs? It's cheaper than importing someone else's stone, I guess.
The animated David is unsettling...

Val Ewing said...

So he does look a bit creepy, but at the same time...that marble! Wow! It is beautiful.

Boud said...

When the whole place is made of marble, you'll use it everywhere. Likewise granite and other "exotic" materials! I was amazed when I first found out that the mountain is literally marble, not just little veins here and there. But M picked very carefully to avoid surprises once the work was under way.

Moving with Mitchell said...

My friend and her sister owned a marble exporting company there and I spent a couple of summers and even went up the mountains with them when they selected marble to cut. Those months changed my life.

Guillaume said...

This reminds me of a dirty joke from Rock et Belles Oreilles (RBO), which I will not type here.

Bob said...

One man's marble is another man's curb.

Linda's Relaxing Lair said...

The animation is amazing, Debra!

Kirk said...

Except I can't charge admission to a doorstep.

peppylady (Dora) said...

Do you write Poetry?

Debra She Who Seeks said...

@ peppylady (Dora) -- Yes, I do dabble a bit from time to time.

Janie Junebug said...

Somebody's mom needs to tell him to be careful because if he crosses his eyes they might stay that way.

Love,
Janie

Anonymous said...

Oui, les collines de Carrere sont si blanches qu’elles semblent couvertes de niege.
Je me suis rendu à Florence, et la ville, tout comme ses sites, est incontounable lors du Grand Tour.
Il est incroyable de voir ce que l’on peut accomplir grâce à l’infographie. Comme on le voit ici avec la statue de David de Michel-Ange, tout comme ces images vidéo de Nijinsky dansant, recréées à partir d’une seule photo.
Monsieur Dupuis 🇨🇦

Mae Travels said...

So many wonders in this world!

River said...

I never knew that statue was marble and never knew marble could be completely white. The only marble I see here is slashed through with streaks of black, grey or brown and to me, that's ugly and if I had to choose between marble or granite, I'd choose granite.

Rade said...

Very cool!

Barbara said...

Dang. That is amazing. And what a great idea for a trip. I would love to do that too,

Fundy Blue said...

David is hilarious!