"Tanka is one of the oldest written form of Japanese poetry. Of all the haiku-related formes, tanka is most like what we call lyric poetry ~ that is, poetry filled with highly personal and emotional expression. In it we say how we feel about those close to us, and what is going on in our thoughts and feelings. Usually tanka, which was most often written in five lines or phrases in a

5-7-5-7-7

syllable pattern, connect these thoughts and emotions to nature. With tanka you can let your imagination help you to express your feeling.

Subjects in American tanka include

nature,
love
and phsychlogical states."

~Bruce Ross

http://Tanka.tribenetwork.com