Helen, Lyenochka, created this multiauthor book in honor of Fanstorian, JoanE, who has been fighting her battle with liver cancer since last year and her life is coming to an end. She started chemotherapy. If you know JoanE, please share a thought or two, a prayer, or a poem and add it to this book.

Joan was a French teacher, and later an artist and poet. She also worked at the Getty Museum. She joined Fanstory 8 years before me in 2008. She was a Recognized Writer 7 years ago and has won a number of contests. She was always learning and sharing her knowledge in her poetry.

I have known Joan since I joined Fanstory. She was always kind to me and we shared our love for painting and Japanese poetry. I knew she had cancer and I prayed she would get better but it sounds like she is coming to the end of her life but her beautiful loving spirit will live on. With my tanka I tried to capture what it means to be an artist.
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Tanka is a Japanese poetic form that originated in the Japanese Imperial Court, Tanka may not exceed 31 syllables (5/7/5/7/7) but it can be less than 31 in a short/long/short/long/long format. for rules click here

DEATH HAIKU OR TANKA in Japan, there was a custom of leaving a poetic short sentence on a deathbed, â??Jisei no ku (death poem). It is considered to be an East Asian custom, especially in Japan since the Middle Ages. Not only poets but also cultural people and samurai warriors composed the death poems when they were dying.
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Thank you for reading my poem and praying for JoanE and her family.

Gypsy