slugfest closing mondo

okay. heavy stuff here. very heavy stuff.

absolutely i'll rattle on with both a technical and emotional analysis of the slugfest -- stay tuned for those. but at this very moment we have a more pressing matter, and that is a formal closing ceremony for the event itself ...

before there was haiku, japanese poets had already spent centuries investigating a form known as "mondo" (while my ancestors tried to figure out how to keep a fire going). a mondo is written by two people and is made of two "katauta," both of the 5-7-7 form. the first katauta is written as a question, the second as an answer.

i have never in my life written a katauta, nor been the co-author of a mondo. to be honest, i've never had a good reason to do so.

now i do.

i can tell you, with 100% sincerity, there is no one in the world i'd rather share this honor with than vegan. he is a fighter. a spirit. a liar about his poetic abilities. and a force.

having fought so hard
in epic syllabic war
what's the next course of action?
remove ice from face
toast your formidable foe
parley and train for next clash.