Vanya Evangeline Poet Clerihew

Notes About The Poem

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Poetry form: Clerimerick Couplets (A hybrid form composed of a Clerihew, Limerick and 2 rhyming Couplets), by Mark Toney

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Katsunari/Katsushige Mizuno (1564 - 1651) was a samurai who lived in the late Sengoku to early Edo period. Infamous for his constant allegiance switching, he earned the moniker "rin kai fuki", which literally translates to "unbridled and unrestrained", but has also been taken to mean "too awesome to only serve one lord". 

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Rin kai fuki

Katsushige Mizuno
Is too awesome for just one lord, you know
For 15 years lived as a wanderer
Moving on from one liege to another

His father's serf once tattled on his misconduct
So he drew his sword upon the man and struck
Dad got sick of his wild displays
He swiftly sent the youth away
But neither scorn nor exile can put a hamper on his pluck

Though he at last went home and made up with dad
Who shortly died; that made him his family's head
Some people say that a rolling stone gathers no moss
But settling down and setting roots is no great loss

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Mark Toney February 22, 2025 at 12:49 PM Vanya, I appreciate your support for my Flash Poetry Challenge (10). Your Clerimerick Couplets contain a fascinating introduction to Katsushige Mizuno during the Warring States Period. Very interesting! Vanya Evangeline February 22, 2025 at 9:50 PM Hey, thanks for introducing me to this poem form. I've always liked history, so this is a great format to talk about interesting figures of the past. I enjoyed reading the others' entries as well.

David Crandall February 18, 2025 at 7:49 PM Cool poem, interesting to learn about the great Katsushige Mizuno! Vanya Evangeline February 18, 2025 at 8:56 PM Thanks! I started my interest in the Sengoku Period thanks to a game, but the figures I ended up liking more are the really obscure ones that aren't playable (if they appear at all) haha.