Congratulations to Mary Lee McClure, winner of our Kigo section and to Kala Ramesh, winner of our Free Format section!
April 2007 Results
Kigo Theme:
Spring Dusk
First Place -- 29 pts
spring dusk —
the earth's fragrance
after the plow
Mary Lee McClure
(2,6,11) = 29 pts
"fragrance" makes me uneasy, but "after" really works.
Second Place -- 26 pts
spring dusk
she would have stopped here
to smell the lilac
RaV
(0,8,10) = 26 pts
Very haunting.
Third Place -- 23 pts
spring dusk
scratching the first
mosquito bite
Bill Hudson
(2,3,10) = 23 pts
Painfully true.
Fourth Place -- 19 pts
spring dusk —
the silence after
her voice...
Israel López Balan
(1,5,6) = 19 pts
Fifth Place -- 18 pts
spring dusk
a flock of seagulls
fade into tomorrow
Keiko
(1,3,8) = 18 pts
Sixth Place -- 17 pts
spring dusk
our voices
softer too
Barbara Snow
(0,2,13) = 17 pts
Seventh Place -- 16 pts
spring dusk —
grandma sews on the button
in a different color
Dorota Pyra
(1,2,9) = 16 pts
An old woman continues to do what she can for loved ones despite failing eyesight.
Eighth Place -- 14 pts
spring dusk —
close enough to touch
his new antlers
-- LGD
(1,2,7) = 14 pts
Says just enough to suggest much more.
They'd have to be very new and small, so very close.
Ninth Place -- 13 pts
Spring dusk ~
the tom cat yawns
and heads out
Paul Hodder
(0,4,5) = 13 pts
The tom cat of (this haiku) quite walked off the page and into the list of votes -- fully alive. Congratulations!
Seasonally correct, and so very true.
Tenth Place -- 12 pts
fingertips
brush the lilacs
spring dusk
Ann K. Schwader
(1,3,3) = 12 pts
** Delicacy in every line of this poem.
Eleventh Place -- 11 pts
deep in a lily
two fireflies pulse —
spring dusk
Nancy Smith
(2,1,3) = 11 pts
A lovely allusion to The Fire Quest - Japanese Folktale: "The Firefly Queen lay safe in her lotus, wrapped in the arms of her beloved"
Twelfth Place -- 10 pts
spring dusk —
dandelion seeds separate
from the stars
Dustin Neal
(1,1,5) = 10 pts
spring dusk —
the quiet
of a white azalea
--Devika
(0,2,6) = 10 pts
Thirteenth Place -- 9 pts
the old couple
hand in hand
spring dusk
Bill Kenney
(1,1,4) = 9 pts
For me the implication here is that the same love exists for this couple as they had for one another when it was young and new.
spring dusk
the new puppy startles
at every shadow
Yositaka
(1,0,6) = 9 pts
spring dusk
in the wheelbarrow
some of the rain
Francine Banwarth
(0,2,5) = 9 pts
This is exquisite and simple, lovely.
spring dusk...
the silence
of street lights
carol pearce
(0,2,5) = 9 pts
spring dusk —
the bell of a bicycle
on the wooded path
Sanjukta
(0,1,7) = 9 pts
Fourteenth Place -- 8 pts
spring dusk
meeting
the eyes of a fox
Beth Powell
(1,1,3) = 8 pts
Yes! Been there.
Just the right moment for such a special encounter.
a swing slows
to the sounds of dinner —
spring dusk
Ron Moss
(0,3,2) = 8 pts
spring dusk
a hazy moon's glow
behind the trees
Bruce Ross
(0,3,2) = 8 pts
spring dusk
the nun adds more sugar
to her tea
Petar Tchouhov
(0,3,2) = 8 pts
What an evocative image and poignant. I can relate.
The nun has given up earthly love in the romantic or physical sense but the concrete sweetness of sugar is still allowed.
river of birds
in a rainbow sky
spring dusk
Terra Martin
(0,2,4) = 8 pts
This is rather 'poetic' for haiku yet I get a very clear and beautiful picture painted with its words.
spring dusk —
catching the last
fly ball
David Grayson
(0,2,4) = 8 pts
spring dusk
sounds of a backyard onion
between my teeth
Thomas Heffernan
(0,1,6) = 8 pts
spring dusk
a toddler whispers
butterfly
Rita Odeh
(0,1,6) = 8 pts
spring dusk . . .
the colt looks back
at its mother
Carol Raisfeld
(0,1,6) = 8 pts
Fifteenth Place -- 7 pts
spring dusk
frogs sing
up to the moon
Deirdre A. Godwin
(1,1,2) = 7 pts
her child's grave
in the spring dusk
the dark rose
Lech Szeglowski
(1,1,2) = 7 pts
spring dusk
the hummingbird savors
one more sip
Sjs
(0,2,3) = 7 pts
Sixteenth Place -- 6 pts
spring dusk —
only my shadow
without colour
Ana Cadarin
(1,1,1) = 6 pts
spring dusk,
waiting for the moonlight
open windows
Dany Fisher
(1,1,1) = 6 pts
Exquisite: the open freshness of spring; the closing of the day; the mysterious, spacious sense of receiving; all wonderfully invoked, with precision and concision, with no person there—but a feeling voice very present. Three cheers -one for every line.
spring dusk...
the bird on a wire still
can see the sun
o0o
O
(0,2,2) = 6 pts leaves too small
to cup rainwater . . .
spring dusk
Marie Summers
(0,1,4) = 6 pts
spring dusk —
a shard of glass catches
the last sunrays
~ Isabelle Prondzynski
(0,1,4) = 6 pts
spring dusk —
the fog rises
above the lake
Mary Chapman
(0,1,4) = 6 pts
Seventeenth Place -- 5 pts
spring dusk —
the bunch of pussy willow
arranges itself
Ami
(1,0,2) = 5 pts
Been there, gave up trying that.
Good observation, as the buds swell they shift.
spring dusk
the pain in my knuckles
Martin
(0,2,1) = 5 pts
spring dusk...
faintly
a cicada
ed markowski
(0,1,3) = 5 pts
spring dusk
the tree top kite
reaches for the moon
Audrey Downey
(0,1,3) = 5 pts
in the spring dusk
a wayward yellow kite
makes its escape
- frederick gier
(0,1,3) = 5 pts
spring dusk
the birds
still sing
Grzegorz Sionkowski
(0,1,3) = 5 pts
a new tremor
in his left hand
... spring dusk
Roberta Beary
(0,1,3) = 5 pts
the whiteness
of courting swans...
spring dusk
Polona
(0,1,3) = 5 pts
Extra pristine for mating season, dusk contrast.
a spider
dangling at the window —
spring dusk
carol bleichert
(0,1,3) = 5 pts
just off the gravel road
the soft green earth
spring dusk
April Serock
(0,0,5) = 5 pts
spring dusk —
water rushes
over the weir
Andrew S
(0,0,5) = 5 pts
spring dusk
purple light seeps
into plum tree leaves
Sherry Weaver Smith
(0,0,5) = 5 pts
spring dusk —
even the egret in the sky
is turning black
max verhart
(0,0,5) = 5 pts
spring dusk —
a birch trunk chops
the sun in two
Corneliu Traian Atanasiu
(0,0,5) = 5 pts
Eighteenth Place -- 4 pts
gathering spring dusk
as shore birds huddle in clumps —
a low, gauzy moon
P. O. Williams
(1,0,1) = 4 pts
spring dusk
gently goes away —
a shadow on window
Maria
(1,0,1) = 4 pts
Spring dusk gathering
In the twilight of nature
Blossoms shimmering
Keith A. SIMMONDS
(1,0,1) = 4 pts
spring dusk
brightened by bursting blooms
fifth year of war
Bell Gale Chevigny
(0,2,0) = 4 pts
spring dusk
playing on
for the final out
tom painting
((0,2,0) = 4 pts
spring dusk
the ruby-throated hummer's
last feed for the night
Jim Swift
(0,2,0) = 4 pts
spring dusk
the twittering
of baby sparrows
Karen Briggs
(0,1,2) = 4 pts
peepers
pump it up
spring dusk
Gourdman
(0,1,2) = 4 pts
a prickly pear
blooms in the canyon —
spring dusk
Melanie Alberts
(0,1,2) = 4 pts
spring dusk
the elderberry bush
shines with flowers
Jacek
(0,1,2) = 4 pts
Spring dusk —
a willow shoot
and a viola
Miorita
(0,1,2) = 4 pts
a newspaper page
tailing the wind
spring dusk
Collin Barber
(0,0,4) = 4 pts
spring dusk —
not having to say goodbye
Mike Montreuil
(0,0,4) = 4 pts
I see two ways a reader might take this evocative verse. Perhaps we see a young couple newly married or one which has been separated but is united again. Or it might be taken as the reflections of an older person having lost a loved one but looking back on a time when lose by death was hardly a considered possibility.
a sickle moon
thinning the spring dusk
yellow crocus
Origa
(0,0,4) = 4 pts
Nineteenth Place -- 3 pts
I remove the bed sheets
from the clothes line
smelling spring dusk
Harvey Jenkins
(1,0,0) = 3 pts
spring day assures you,
"won't be needing that sweater."
"we'll see!" smiles spring dusk.
Kwatz
(1,0,0) = 3 pts
spring dusk
the farmer’s new crop
a distant green
RD McManes
(0,1,1) = 3 pts
spring dusk —
the chirping
gone too
d.v. rozic
(0,1,1) = 3 pts
"too" gets the sensory imagination going.
all these scents
in full romp
spring dusk
Mark Hollingsworth
(0,1,1) = 3 pts
Spring Dusk —
Strolling Some Bees
Among Violets
Reza Aerabi
(0,1,1) = 3 pts
apple blossoms
fading into green
spring dusk
~fedelmia
(0,1,1) = 3 pts
spring dusk —
leo crouching in
the eastern sky
Tristan Coleridge
(0,1,1) = 3 pts
echoes of frog song
under the covered bridge
spring dusk
Elizabeth Fanto
(0,0,3) = 3 pts
Sounding box of the bridge, and covered both topics!
spring dusk
the fading cry
of a gull
Susan Constable
(0,0,3) = 3 pts
spring dusk
shadows stretch
between the trees
Neil Muscott
(0,0,3) = 3 pts
Free Format Theme:
Bridge
First Place -- 32 pts
mountain bridge —
I pass through
the clouds
Kala Ramesh
(1,9,11) = 32 pts
Second Place -- 19 pts
hanging bridge...
only the stars
from side to side
Dorota Pyra
(0,7,5) = 19 pts
Third Place -- 16 pts
old man on the bridge —
his still face
in the flowing water
Gosia Zamorska
(1,3,7) = 16 pts
narrow bridge ~
the distance
between us
Paul Hodder
(0,4,6) = 16 pts
Fourth Place -- 15 pts
barefoot
on a wooden bridge
summer
Bill Kenney
(1,5,2) = 15 pts
I feel the heat and am right there!
suspension bridge
her test comes back
positive
Sjs
(1,4,4) = 15 pts
unfinished bridge
the sun sets
on the other side
Collin Barber
(0,4,7) = 15 pts
"the other side" an is eloquent phrase in this context, and there's a wabi-sabi quality to the whole.
Fifth Place -- 14 pts
suicide bridge
i keep
to the middle lane
Roberta Beary
(2,2,4) = 14 pts
hometown bridge
the girl’s small shadow
crosses mine
Keiko
(2,0,8) = 14 pts
bridge —
the river never
knowing…
William M. Gottlieb
(0,6,2) = 14 pts
covered bridge...
i tell her i love her
under my breath
ed markowski
(0,2,10) = 14 pts
A nice juxtaposition of the bridge being sheltered and also the poet's tender feeling.
under the bridge
pigeons nest
above the graffiti
Neil Muscott
(0,2,10) = 14 pts
A vivid image with nice contrasts.
Every now and then, we have to look "under," and sometimes we discover an "above" even there.
no bridge
across a mountain stream
scent of daffodils
Polona
(0,2,10) = 14 pts
Sixth Place -- 13 pts
dark bridge —
if I cross the river
the moon, too
Israel López Balan
(1,1,10) = 13 pts
Seventh Place -- 12 pts
moon bridge —
the old man splits
an orange
Dustin Neal
(0,2,8) = 12 pts
A rare and delicate allusion.
Again the roundness of the bridge and reflection compared with the roundness of the fruit. There's also the straight edge comparison of the bridge at the waterline and the cut through the orange.
The moon bridge arches so high that at water level it joins its reflection as a full circle. That circle being split like the old man's orange. Might the man in the moon see earth as a pale plum perhaps.
Eighth Place -- 11 pts
cherry blossoms float
under the old stone bridge
your death still raw
Angelika Kolompar Bygott
(0,2,7) = 11 pts
Ninth Place -- 10 pts
crossing over —
her handwritten note
found on the bridge.
Karen Briggs
(1,2,3) = 10 pts
footbridge
my face lost in a swirl
of koi
--Irene Golas
(1,1,5) = 10 pts
This haiku creates a vivid picture. The fact that it is a bridge for feet rather than automobiles or trains nicely compliments the loss of persona in the swirl of life from the depths.
"a swirl of koi" is wonderfully dynamic, and "lost" is exactly the right choice.
high noon —
dozens of bats dangle
under the bridge
-- Richard Kay
(0,2,6) = 10 pts
Eighth Place -- 9 pts
Grandma’s bridge
bright pink and white
in Waterford glass
Elizabeth Fanto
(0,3,3) = 9 pts
below the bridge
sunken moon dancing
with city lights
Dsnake1
(0,2,5) = 9 pts
Tenth Place -- 8 pts
listening to
The sound of her footstep —
The old bridge
Maria
(2,0,2) = 8 pts
Peace Bridge
traffic at a halt
for inspection
tom painting
(0,3,2) = 8 pts
Eleventh Place -- 7 pts
April rain —
the floods carry
away the bridge
~ Lazarus Ogembo
(1,1,2) = 7 pts
swinging bridge —
just enough wind to make me
feel weak
Ana Cadarin
(0,3,1) = 7 pts
ancient bridge —
april flowers flutter
against its stone
Nancy Smith
(0,3,1) = 7 pts
bridge in the fog
just to the middle
of the river
Grzegorz Sionkowski
(0,2,3) = 7 pts
This would look great with a black & white photo of an iron bridge.
clouds of dreams
drifting apart
we build our bridges
Ben Gieske
(0,2,3) = 7 pts
the drawbridge too
has
its ups and downs
doris kasson
(0,2,3) = 7 pts
I find this haiku almost joyously light in the comparison it draws (not pun intended) between the mechanical workings of a bridge and the emotional fluctuations of a human.
Chinese garden —
Pooh sticks with granny
on every bridge
-- ushi
(0,2,3) = 7 pts
I admit to Googling this to know what it meant, and it gets a vote for the many times I played this game with my brothers and sister. Even though we didn't know about Pooh Bear.
above and below
this slippery log bridge
the moon
Josh Wikhoff
(0,1,5) = 7 pts
On reflection, great movement and humour.
a temple path —
the small bridge vanishes
into a duckweed
Origa
(0,1,5) = 7 pts
This is a beautiful evocative haiku which, to my mind, would have been even finer without the two "a".
Twelfth Place -- 6 pts
between winter brown
and spring green-
the yellow forsythia arch
April Serock
(1,1,1) = 6 pts
Nice and subtle.
riverside hike;
a fallen pine
extends our journey
Dana D.
(0,2,2) = 6 pts
a school of minnows
swims under the bridge
long weekend
DeVar
(0,1,4) = 6 pts
Thirteenth Place -- 5 pts
slow, green river
sunshine crossing
over the bridge
d.v.rozic
(1,1,0) = 5 pts
I stop on this bridge
trolls rolling beneath my feet
wet banks oozing mud
Harvey Jenkins
(1,1,0) = 5 pts
old plank bridge
unsteady under my feet
balancing act
Deirdre A. Godwin
(1,1,0) = 5 pts
bridge between
my mind and hands ~
lump of clay
~fedelmia
(1,1,0) = 5 pts
rippled sunlight
a flash of ducklings
below the bridge
Susan Constable
(1,1,0) = 5 pts
a way to nowhere
melted snow is slipping down
the old broken bridge
Piotr Mogri
(1,1,0) = 5 pts
alone on our bridge —
an echo of memory
the sound of her steps
Jim Swift
(0,2,1) = 5 pts
the bridge
from teller to listeners
"...trip trap trip trap"
Barbara Snow
(0,1,3) = 5 pts
railway bridge
another clickety-clack
pierces the night
RaV
(0,1,3) = 5 pts
rope bridge
the chasm
bearing its shadow
Lech Szeglowski
(0,1,3) = 5 pts
Fragility of the bridge borne by it's shadow.
Nice word pun using 'bearing'' the weight of the shadow.
an evening walk
end of the drawbridge
among the stars
Jacek
(0,0,5) = 5 pts
Fourteenth Place -- 4 pts
Hogan's Bridge:
one golfer heads for the green
the other for the woods
-- LGD
(1,0,1) = 4 pts
At last, a sport ku I can understand.
ashes scattered
into the wind
covered bridge
Judi Honiker
(0,2,0) = 4 pts
blue tarp
the hobo’s home
under a bridge
RD McManes
Is the wanderer also 'blue' at being homeless or does he know some joy in his freedom from worldly possessions and ties?
pine bough
grown over the bridge
pruned
Gourdman
(0,1,2) = 4 pts
ripples spread
below the bridge...
all cares gone.
Martin W. Hunt
(0,1,2) = 4 pts
striped caterpillar
crossing the
Monarch bridge
Tish Davis
(0,1,2) = 4 pts
narrow bridge
five flower covered crosses
wired to the railing
Edward
(0,1,2) = 4 pts
Very tender; unfortunately we see this all too often.
spring crossing
early morning yawn
of a lift bridge
Mary Davila
(0,1,2) = 4 pts
A dull commute where surroundings match the mood.
heavy mist
a bridge
to the other side
Shanna
(0,1,2) = 4 pts
new bridge
a smile crosses
my dentist's face
arkady elterman
(0,0,4) = 4 pts
Fifteenth Place -- 3 pts
half-moon bridge
the evoked memories
make me blush
Audrey Downey
(0,1,1) = 3 pts
Manhattan Bridge
the d train's seat flashes
from the gum foil
Martin
(0,1,1) = 3 pts
wind on the river —
traffic passing silently
over the bridge
Andrew S
(0,1,1) = 3 pts
sunshowers...
beyond the Harbour Bridge
a rainbow
Sue Stanford
(0,1,1) = 3 pts
full day moon . . .
a bridge rises
out of the fog
Marie Summers
(0,1,1) = 3 pts
pedestrian bridge —
memories of the madman
who lived here
~ Isabelle Prondzynski
(0,1,1) = 3 pts
Tallahatchie
catfish jumping
under the bridge
Beth Powell
(0,1,1) = 3 pts
her warm smile
immediately bridges
the language gap
Meredith Stern Cavalieri
(0,1,1) = 3 pts
spring thaw —
horses crossing a bridge
upriver
Ami
(0,1,1) = 3 pts
suspension bridge
our shadows cross
on the water
Paul R
(0,1,1) = 3 pts
on the bridge
stops a child from crying
a butterfly
Mirko Varga
(0,1,1) = 3 pt
long bridge...
a new couple drives straight
to the full moon
Rita Odeh
(0,0,3) = 3 pts
barefoot bridge —
a boy tiptoes on a log
across the stream
-- Anne Nechesa
(0,0,3) = 3 pts
rope footbridge —
in its swinging shadow,
little trout jump
Zhanna P. Rader
(0,0,3) = 3 pts
This haiku is both musically rhythmic and lively. The 'darkness' is not 'fixed' but sways while charming life leaps from deep water.
swampy terrain
a bison becomes the bridge
for an egret
gillena cox
(0,0,3) = 3 pts
hot midday
the skipping stone goes
under the bridge
Petar Tchouhov
(0,0,3) = 3 pts
open bridge —
tail lights melt
into fog
carol pearce
(0,0,3) = 3 pts