O:JA&L Poetry: All forms & styles
Sharon Hoffmann
THE GREAT BUDDHA OF KAMAKURA
I am four. My legs are short,
but the walk from the train station
to the temple is not far. Michiko
holds my hand. To me, Amidabutsu
looks as tall as ten men.
Once he had a house, Michi tells me,
but it kept burning down, and
now the weather has turned him
as green as summer. Now he sits
in the open and belongs to everyone.
We pay again and go through
the door to his insides, then
we climb and climb and climb.
At the very top we look out
through the Buddha’s narrow eyes.
We can see everything from here,
crowds and crowds of people.
Michiko says they are here
to feed the hungry ghosts.
I don’t know what this means,
but I fret, worrying that
everything delicious will be eaten up
before we climb back down.
I am wrong. Soon enough,
the kakigori stains my lips,
the wata-ame melts in my mouth,
and something new to me,
a sweet shaped like a little fish.
On the last train home, filled
with good food, I ask Michi why
Amidabutsu is empty inside.
He is hollow, not empty, she tells me,
but also, we were inside him,
so he was full. This answer does not
satisfy. What about at night,
I want to know. When we go home,
he’s empty then. Doesn’t that
make him lonely? I can tell she’s
trying not to smile. It isn’t
always bad to be empty,
she explains. Empty and lonely
aren’t the same. Anyway,
you are too young to worry
about the loneliness of Amidabutsu.
I remind her that I will be five
next Girls Day. Fine, she says,
You can begin to worry then.
About the writer:
Sharon Hoffmann is a writer based in Atlantic Beach, Florida. Publications include The Hooghly Review, New York Quarterly, Beloit Poetry Journal, Alice Walker: Critical Perspectives (Harvard University Press), Paddler Press, South Florida Poetry Journal, Letters, Wild Roof, Sho, and other magazines. Awards include fellowships from Atlantic Center for the Arts and Florida’s Division of Cultural Affairs, two Pushcart nominations and a nomination for Best Spiritual Literature.
Image: Vairocana (AI-assisted digital image) by O:JA&L staff creative. 2025. Public domain via MidJourney AI.
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O:JA&L’S BUTTONHOOK PRESS MASTERS SERIES
Click on the titles below to explore or download the free PDF chapbooks in the O:JA&L Masters Series.
The Buttonhook Press Masters Series: Brian Clements on Prose Poetry
With an Interview by Associate Editor Pamelyn Casto
The Buttonhook Press Masters Series: Mark Budman on Flash Discourse
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The Buttonhook Press Masters Series: Ray Gonzalez on Prose Poetry
With an Interview by Associate Editor Pamelyn Casto
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With an Interview by Associate Editor Pamelyn Casto
The Buttonhook Press Master Series: Roberta Allen on Flash Fiction
With an Interview by Associate Editor Pamelyn Casto
The Buttonhook Press Master Series: Peter Conners on Flash Fiction
With an Interview by Associate Editor Pamelyn Casto
The Buttonhook Press Masters Series: Maxine Chernoff on Prose Poetry
With an Interview by Associate Editor Pamelyn Casto
The Buttonhook Press Masters Series: Pedro Ponce on Flash Fiction
With an Interview by Associate Editor Pamelyn Casto
The Buttonhook Press Masters Series: Tom Hazuka on Flash Fiction
With an interview by Associate Editor Pamelyn Casto
The Buttonhook Press Masters Series: Kent Dixon on Flash Fiction & Nonfiction
With an interview by Associate Editor Pamelyn Casto
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