Letter From The Editor

              Welcome to the fifth issue of White Enso. 
                                  To get the full benefit of this journal,
                             it is best to view it on a computer or tablet.

I like to think that, as editor, I'm in charge of White Enso. The truth is, something else is in charge; for each issue, unrelated people from around the world send me related submissions. For example, in this issue, several works about trains were submitted. Each was interesting and well done, but two stood out to me because they so beautifully connected to this month's theme of Reflection. Mark Meyer's haibun "Off the Rails...Stops Along the Way" uses the Arakawa Toden streetcar as a metaphor for life, while Michael Pronko contributed an essay called "Tokyo Train Time" to reflect on the diversity of people, life, experiences, thoughts, styles, and attitudes that is Tokyo. History is reflected in both Elahe Nassr's "Ashes of a Wandering Dream," which is the account of the life of a fictional character in Hiroshima, and in "May the Sun Rise," where Dibyasree Nandy imagines a letter written by Takasugi Shinsaku, a supporter of the Meiji Restoration to Tokugawa supporter General Hijikata Toshizō.

The visual art in this issue--from Heather Midori Yamada, Monica Deife, Ron C. Moss, and Debbie Strange-- is simply stunning. And oddly, thanks to fate(?), Karma(?), the ether(?) Amber Logan submitted Tanabata Night, a twisted, backward, alternative account of the Japanese holiday. Why thanks to fate? Because, by coincidence, I was playing around with some of my photographs and created a twisted, backward, alternative perspective in Alternate Reality. 

The contributions highlighted above are only a few of the many outstanding works in this issue, but the others are by no means less in any way. Please make your way to the Table of Contents and visit each page.

​Many years ago, a friend of mine visited me in Zurich and I bought him a few of my favorite chocolate truffles. He popped one in his mouth and gulped it down. I gasped. Truffles are meant to sit gently on the tongue and be allowed to melt so that the cacophony of flavors can be understood, reflected upon, savored. (It's true. Truffles are like good wine.) I bring up this story because, like truffles, White Enso should be savored. I suggest reading a story, a poem, an essay, then let the ideas in it simmer within you before moving on to the next page. I hope the work in White Enso will stick with you, change you. They will certainly impress you. Enjoy!

​Linda Gould
Managing Editor                                                                                                       
                                                                                  
                                                                                           All photos in White Enso by Linda Gould unless otherwise noted.

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Cover art: "Pinched Goldfish"
Quilt by
Kumiko Komiya

Use and/or duplication of any content on White Enso is strictly prohibited without express and written permission from the author and/or owner.

Table of Contents                                                                                                                                         Page One