August 2010 Kukai

Kigo Theme: 

August Moon

First Place — 19 Points

August moon

somewhere in the dark

a blues harp

Ignatius Fay

(3,3,4) = 19 pts

and

August moon — 

this heat

between our sheets

Michael Dylan Welch

(2,2,9) = 19 pts

I know this feeling but lately it's my side of the bed that is the hottest! (darn mid-life!)

Second Place — 17 Points

August moon

the enormous belly

of the garden Buddha

Michael McClintock

(0,5,7) = 17 pts

Third Place — 16 Points

August moon . . .

from imperfect people

perfect shadows

Warren Gossett

(1,3,7) = 16 pts

Lovely.

Fourth Place — 15 Points

august moon

the neighbors willow

dipped in silver

Bill Hudson

(0,2,11) = 15 pts

Fifth Place — 13 Points

August moon

caught in the brambles — 

my thoughts

Alegria

(0,2,9) = 13 pts

I love the physical imagery, the sense of contemplation and the possibility that the thoughts are as tangled as the bush. Beautiful.

August moon

not a single rest

in the cricket song

Rafal Zabratynski

(0,2,9) = 13 pts

Sixth Place — 12 Points

fuller still

than my memory of it —

August moon

Shelley Krause

(2,1,4) = 12 pts

My vote of 1 (one) for this haiku (hay-kyoo as I learned recently) for me is equivalent to 3 (three), the max of what I should give, but like the biblical widow one is all I have.

I like the ambiguous link between the two parts of this haiku . . . wondering if the summer, a relationship, an entire life, perhaps, was also fuller than the poet's memory of it.

August moon

the feral cat

cries for love

Lynne Steel

(1,3,3) = 12 pts

So simple and yet so striking.

August moon

my mother signs

her living will

Tom Painting

(0,3,6) = 12 pts

Wow! This one is just fantastic. So personal.

Seventh Place — 11 Points

in the palm

of his hand

august moon

Roberta Beary

(1,2,4) = 11 pts

the end of downpour

every puddle catches

the August moon

Jacek M.

(1,1,6) = 11 pts

August moon

how silently

the owl flies

Cara Holman

(0,3,5) = 11 pts

It's difficult to capture my attention with an owl and the moon, since many haiku have been written about these subjects. However, such an understated description allows me to dream and write my own story.

Eighth Place — 10 Points

August moon

the dead dog's bowl

bone dry

Collin Barber

(2,0,4) = 10 pts

This is just haunting. I had to hug my pup.

august moon —

the schoolyard stinks

of roofing tar

aom (tim)

(1,1,5) = 10 pts

among

the green apples

August moon

Ann K. Schwader

(0,1,8) = 10 pts

Ninth Place — 9 Points

august moon ::

a great log in the river

rolls over

timothy russell

(1,1,4) = 9 pts

separation . . .

we watch the same

autumn moon

Susan Constable

(0,2,5) = 9 pts

Sigh. I feel like watching An American Tale!

Tenth Place — 8 Points

august moon

the smell of fish and chips

from the dumpster

martin

(1,1,3) = 8 pts

Oh the memories of seaside evenings and that unmistakable smell of fish and chips! Happy days.

August moon

the soft touch

of a worn sweater

Marleen Hulst

(0,2,4) = 8 pts

I feel a touch of autumn in the air as I read this haiku and a sense of nostalgia, as well. Perhaps the sweater belongs, not to the owner, but to someone loved and missed.

August moon

painting a snail path

silver

Zhanna P. Rader

(0,1,6) = 8 pts

Eleventh Place — 7 Points

far from home

a soldier keeping watch on

August moon

Juhani Tikkanen

(0,2,3) = 7 pts

I prefer reading Line2 without the last word "on".

august moon —

the giraffe bends to

caress her calf

ARW

(0,2,3) = 7 pts

in the desert

flooding the cotton fields —

August Moon

John Daleiden

(0,2,3) = 7 pts

at the gate . . .

an airborne spider

in the autumn moon

Carol Raisfeld

(0,2,3) = 7 pts

a coin falls

into the beggar's hand

August moon

Rita Odeh

(0,1,5) = 7 pts

swallow after swallow

settling on a wire

august moon

Polona

(0,0,7) = 7 pts

Twelfth Place — 6 Points

Autumn moon

tawny salted skin and

sun bleached straw

andrea

(1,1,1) = 6 pts

moving day —

the august moon

at my bay window

Israel Lopez Balan

(0,2,2) = 6 pts

August Moon

out of the night

out of itself

Elinor Pihl Huggett

(0,2,2) = 6 pts

Lighting

the crickets' chorus —

August moon

Vasile Moldovan

(0,1,4) = 6 pts

Ramadan —

she washes her feet under

August moonlight

Bamboocha

(0,1,4) = 6 pts

august moon

the colours of my hydrangeas

fading away

Gryta Wansdronk

(0,1,4) = 6 pts

Thirteenth Place — 5 Points

August moon

the trial run

of a school bus

Michele L. Harvey

(0,2,1) = 5 pts

august moon

the harvest table

bare this year

Stevie Strang

(0,2,1) = 5 pts

turning cool

the August moon

silvers the pines

Bill Kenney

(0,2,1) = 5 pts

August moon

he rewrites chapter ten

after her call

Edward

(0,1,3) = 5 pts

gathering the eggs

we almost forgot

August moon

Barbara Snow

(0,1,3) = 5 pts

autumn moon

a hawk glides

along the mountain ridge

Raffael de Gruttola

(0,1,3) = 5 pts

Fourteenth Place — 4 Points

In the shadows

hidden from the August moon . . .

A whippoorwill calls

Tom Conally

(1,0,1) = 4 pts

august moon

lighting up the Milky Way —

time to return home

Natalia Kuznetsova

(1,0,1) = 4 pts

dark room —

spots of August moon

fall on the floor

Winslause Yamame

(1,0,1) = 4 pts

August moon —

only the blackbird and I

are still awake

Isabelle Prondzynski

(0,1,2) = 4 pts

august moon

infused insects

at the teahouse

ernest j berry

(0,1,2) = 4 pts

Fifteenth Place — 3 Points

clothed in night

she dives for a midnight swim

twin August moons

Jennifer Stefanow

(0,1,1) = 3 pts

August moon

through the airplane window

so close

maxianne

(0,1,1) = 3 pts

katydids . . .

giving voice

to August moon

jeff hoagland

(0,1,1) = 3 pts

Dear friend

why do you hide?

August Moon

Ashi

(0,1,1) = 3 pts

above tall stalks

of swaying sweet corn

August moon

Amicus

(0,1,1) = 3 pts

August moon —

between crickets and frogs

what should I listen first?

Petru-Ioan Garda

(0,0,3) = 3 pts

sleepless night —

I gaze beyond

the August moon

James Dobson

(0,0,3) = 3 pts

Sixteenth Place — 2 Points

total eclipse

the August Moon

hides its face

Lorraine Margueritte Gasrel Black

(0,1,0) = 2 pts

midnight

skinny dipping

August moon

R. C.

(0,1,0) = 2 pts

aggravating pain

in the legs and sleeplessness:

august moon

R. K. Singh

(0,1,0) = 2 pts

sailing clouds —

the August half moon

shines brighter

Isaac Ndirangu.

(0,1,0) = 2 pts

young August moon —

the Ramadan timetable

in the dailies

Patrick Wafula

(0,1,0) = 2 pts

lovers strolling

upon glistening sand . . .

August moon

Keith A. Simmonds

(0,0,2) = 2 pts

jet lag

on the horizon

a red moon

Klemens

(0,0,2) = 2 pts

August moonlight

the distant howls

of drunks

Melissa Spurr

(0,0,2) = 2 pts

a constellation

of silver starfish

 —autumn moon

Paul Hodder

(0,0,2) = 2 pts

fishing rod

in hand at dawn

. . . august moon

Diane Mayr

(0,0,2) = 2 pts

August moon

on her first journal entry

a tear drop

Anonymous

(0,0,2) = 2 pts

august moon

the fresh crisp air

of shortening days

Frances McCarthy

(0,0,2) = 2 pts

lantern snuffed —

finding my yin

in this August moon

Terri L. French

(0,0,2) = 2 pts

August moon —

stray cat's tail

swaying sunflowers

Kurt R. Westley

(0,0,2) = 2 pts

a lazy roll

over dogs and plums and thunder

august moon

jon espen vassbotn

(0,0,2) = 2 pts

a blue haze

on the August moon . . .

summer goodbyes

Catherine J.S. Lee

(0,0,2) = 2 pts

August moon

shadow boxing

I spar with myself

Meredith Cavalieri

(0,0,2) = 2 pts

white,

under a full August moon,

antler

og_a

(0,0,2) = 2 pts

nude swim —

a fish scatters

the august moon

Anonymous

(0,0,2) = 2 pts

Seventeenth Place — 1 Point

clothes tumbling

beside our bedroom window

August Moon

Pris Campbell

autumn moon

on the wallpaper

her head turns up

s.a doggfall

picnic

litter

August moon

Anonymous

August moon . . .

leaping from

a jasmine porch

Heike Gewi

August moon . . .

she knows what

she's looking for

Francine Banwarth

through cloudy prisms

fringing the August moon

twin rainbows

Liz Rule

August moon . . .

remembering

our first kiss

Barbara A Taylor

August moon

my newly opening eyes

birthing the glow

Donna Bauerly

August moon

obscured

by the cicadas' song

April Serock

seven years ago

we shared a final . . .

august moon

Judi Honiker

August moon —

her birthday wish

a day late

Garry Gay

tall corn

in the field of dreams —

August moon

DeVar

August moon

on the water disappears with a cloud -

the lake, too

MoT

august moon —

on the parking meter

a butterfly

kaiser

No points this time, sorry.

An august full moon

up in high humidity,

ventilator breeze.

Horst Ludwig

Bathed in silken light

a prey to anxiety . . .

August moon frenzy

Gabriele

August moon

now I see it

the old woman

Carolyn Coit Dancy

a hundred yellow figs

to choose from: no need to hurry

August moon

Sheila K. Barksdale

full august moon

rippling over the waves . . .

a light fandango

eric

You promised the moon

on the first of June.

Too soon it's August — no moon!

Robert C. Howard

holiday in France

each chateau is a backdrop

for the August moon

Harvey Jenkins

even fireflies

bow

to this August moon

Marili Deandrea

a slice of moon

before the bird songs

early August dawn

gillena cox

cicadas singing

August moon smiling

summer takes its final bow

Jenn McSweeney

August moon —

chinese children

flying a kite

John McDonald

in the flower bed

overturned pail

spilling August moon

Ben Gieske

same crescent as June

just a little bit lower

almost time for school

Nick Petrone

playing hide and seek

with the clouds all August-

the moon !

manoj saranathan

faint memories

of the day's cool hours —

August moon

Catherine Njeri Maina

Bright white light

through tall dark green trees —

August moon.

Trevor Camp

from the thermal pool

steam rises through palm fronds

August moon

Elaine Riddell

August moon

An owl hoots

She turns in her sleep

Mary E. Gray

August moon

clouding over . . .

fear of the flooding again

Bill Pauly

bladder bursting

pissing from the pier bursting

the August moon

Robert Ertman

sliver of moon

I walk our dogs through the dusk

nostalgic for the dawn

John Thompson

waxing August moon

tonight's dreams more full of him

than the night before

Kate Creighton

pleasant rainy clouds

smell of soil scents fragrance

august moon in a happy mood

Purush

peaceful night —

two stars twinkling around

the August moon

Antony Mwangi

No wood on the hearth —

I wake to the whole house chilled

by the August moon.

R. Joyce Heon

corn stubble dawn —

three gulls across

a white moon

Offa

August moon

one, two, three . . . yellow leaves fall

from the cherry-tree

Miorita

sun ripe tomatoes

cooked to sauce under the cool

August moon

gourdman

Lips burn with cinnamon

Peach juice crosses my chin

August moon laughs

Christine Howard

General Comments:

Very difficult to narrow down this month. So many wonderful possibilities.

I enjoyed this kigo. Thank you!

I had 9 good haiku in my list. My heart got broken when I couldn't vote all of those!

Free Format Theme: 

Moving

First Place — 26 Points

moving day —

in the empty room

my mother's smell

Israel López Balan

(1,6,11) = 26 pts

Second Place — 25 Points

change of address . . .

the constant shift

of stars

Melissa Spurr

(1,7,8) = 25 pts

This makes me think of the saying, 'the more things change, the more they stay the same." No matter where we move to, we'll see the same stars, even though their position may be different.

How true and very beautifully symbolic of the constant changes.

Third Place — 20 Points

moving day —

a drift of dandelion seeds

leads the way

aom (tim)

(2,4,6) = 20 pts

Beautiful I can see those little umbrella seeds floating in the breeze.

High hopes and best wishes!

Although this was the Free Form Section of the kukai, this one which carries a kigo of dandelion proves to be my favourite.

Fourth Place — 19 Points

foster care

he packs a shoebox

of pretend

Roberta Beary

(4,1,5) = 19 pts

Sad and beautiful.

Heart touching; a move we rarely consider, sadly.

A poignant haiku. I can't help but wonder how many times this child has packed another shoebox, hoping that 'next time', things will be different.

Fifth Place — 16 Points

moving out —

we leave

a full bird feeder

Barbara Snow

(0,4,8) = 16 pts

A thoughtful moving day gesture.

Sixth Place — 15 Points

creature of habit

she tries the old key

in the new door

Meredith Cavalieri

(0,4,7) = 15 pts

Seventh Place — 14 Points

locking the house

..one

....last

.....time

Chitra Rajappa

(2,1,6) = 14 pts

moving day —

wrapping grandma's china

in today's paper

Terri L. French

(0,4,6) = 14 pts

Beautiful juxtaposition of the old and the new as everything is moved from here to there.

Eighth Place — 13 Points

moving —

even our shadows

leave in the van

John McDonald

(1,2,6) = 13 pts

moving out . . .

I pass a snail

going the other way

Liz Rule

(0,4,5) = 13 pts

moving back

to my old hometown

ghosts everywhere

Pris Campbell

(0,3,7) = 13 pts

moving day —

her last glimpse

of the boy next door

James Dobson

(0,2,9) = 13 pts

Ninth Place — 11 Points

moving day

memories in boxes

cats in hiding

Diane Mayr

(1,2,4) = 11 pts

Nice juxtaposition between the poignancy of memories and the humor of cat behavior.

moving out —

willows entangle

the wind

Heike Gewi

(0,2,7) = 11 pts

mom's old house

. . . even the memories

have moved out

Warren Gossett

(0,2,7) = 11 pts

moving . . .

different truck

same stuff

Elinor Pihl Huggett

(0,2,7) = 11 pts

moving day

my father stares

into the glass

Tom Painting

(0,0,11) = 11 pts

Tenth Place — 10 Points

moving out

the clock-shaped mark

on the wall

Rafal Zabratynski

(1,1,5) = 10 pts

Eleventh Place — 8 Points

shadows moving

in the midnight breeze —

a coyote howls

John Daleiden

(1,2,1) = 8 pts

moving on . . .

the bus is filled

with dreams

Carol Raisfeld

(1,1,3) = 8 pts

moving out —

staring at the spaces

where your books once stood

jon

(0,2,4) = 8 pts

moving

leaving Buddha

in the garden

Ben Gieske

(0,2,4) = 8 pts

Twelfth Place — 7 Points

first day of school —

a moving finger reads

word to word

Ellen Compton

(0,2,3) = 7 pts

moving

our tortoise explores

the new lawn

carmel lively westerman

(0,1,5) = 7 pts

Thirteenth Place — 6 Points

winter move . . .

surprised by how little

she needs

Susan Constable

(0,2,2) = 6 pts

that local accent

too soon my own

Carolyn Coit Dancy

(0,1,4) = 6 pts

house hunting —

remembering each place

by its smell

Paul Hodder

(0,1,4) = 6 pts

Fourteenth Place — 5 Points

moving day —

a change

of key

Cara Holman

(0,0,5) = 5 pts

moving day

the toddler scolds

the goldfish

Bill Kenney

(0,0,5) = 5 pts

Fifteenth Place — 4 Points

Jehovah's witness

as soon as I open the door

a fly moves in

Collin Barber

(1,0,1) = 4 pts

this change

of address card —

who are they?

miriam chaikin

(0,1,2) = 4 pts

his new neighbour's cat

another excuse

to drop by

maxianne

(0,1,2) = 4 pts

hospital visit

moving the flowers closer

once more

Michele L. Harvey

(0,1,2) = 4 pts

sweet reunion

the baby finds

his teddy bear

R. C.

(0,1,2) = 4 pts

moving day

one last look

our life in boxes

Frances McCarthy

(0,0,4) = 4 pts

Unpacking

every opened box

explored by our cat

Garry Gay

(0,0,4) = 4 pts

Sixteenth Place — 3 Points

moving van rumbles by

homeless man reciting Santoka

to his shadow

Kurt R. Westley

(1,0,0) = 3 pts

clouds moving

across the murky sky . . .

lofty raindrops

Keith A. Simmonds

(0,1,1) = 3 pts

moving day

the husband's back

suddenly bad again

Bill Hudson

(0,1,1) = 3 pts

drained marsh lands

a red-winged black bird sings

on the last bullrush

Harvey Jenkins

(0,1,1) = 3 pts

hammering the old sign

into the new door —

she hears her own heartbeat

Alegria

(0,1,1) = 3 pts

closing the summer house —

a chevron of wild geese

heads southward

Catherine J.S. Lee

(0,1,1) = 3 pts

nursing home

moving in

closer to the end

Stevie Strang

(0,1,1) = 3 pts

moving out . . .

under the porch

a rotting pear

Marili Deandrea

(0,0,3) = 3 pts

I like this because it makes me think of what little we leave behind. This feels as though the owner took everything of value and left only a few unwanted memories.

Dorm room —

the pupa spins

its chrysalis.

R. Joyce Heon

(0,0,3) = 3 pts

Seventeenth Place — 2 Points

moving day

all boxed up

a break from dusting

Lorraine Margueritte Gasrel Black

(0,0,2) = 2 pts

having no chair

having no table

the sand toad's new digs

Michael McClintock

(0,0,2) = 2 pts

all the rooms empty —

dusk everywhere

C.P. Harrison

(0,0,2) = 2 pts

New home beckons

She removes the plaque

From the cat's grave

Mary E. Gray

(0,0,2) = 2 pts

packing up

my convent trunk

all I have inside

Donna Bauerly

(0,0,2) = 2 pts

moving on

my pick up's packed full

of memories

Amicus

(0,0,2) = 2 pts

Eighteenth Place — 1 Point

moving . . .

our last view

of the family homestead

Michael Dylan Welch

Moving her body

strategy along the beech,

a hawk gliding by.

Horst Ludwig

leash in the grass

overgrown dog dish

 —house up for sale

if

Ireland's emerald hills

fade and fall into the sea.

All my world is blue.

Robert Charles Howard

mountain view

my son's new apartment

down the hallway

andrea

Moving a horse,

then the bishop of white . . .

checkmate!

Vasile Moldovan

moving day

the dog's ears twitching behind

closed car window

gillena cox

single dust bunny

marks the spot of her first steps. . .

we must go now, babe

Nick Petrone

moving day;

in the wall where the photo hung-

a broken cobweb swaying.

manoj saranathan

Even though I think the middle line is too long, there's something about the swaying cobweb that says 'home' and, to me, illustrates the nostalgia of moving.

moving in

the smell of

memories

Rita Odeh

still in that box

her old love letters

after fifty years

Barbara A Taylor

moving in

the heat of the

lava lamp

Anonymous

moving between

the fingers of a toddler

the monsoon rain

R.K. Singh

heat wave —

even the grasshoppers

aren't moving

Shelley Krause

moving day —

wondering what memory

we left behind

Mike Montreuil

the drunken coachman

let his horse

take him home

MoT

No points this time, sorry.

her late mother’s train

still stopping traffic

breathtaking speed

Anonymous

rental truck floor

in the attic mirror

the august moon

martin

baby robins

moving out of mama's nest

blue shells left behind

Tom Conally

noise of frogs —

only lilies stop me

to move

Alex Serban

rain

the road so narrow-gauge

earthworms

svein lie

shabby furniture

hoisted high, caressed

by a row of sunflowers

Sheila K. Barksdale

Summer afternoon —

moth flying

wake up the cat

Petru Ioan Garda

locks changed . . .

stuff inappropriately

strewn on porch

eric

dancer moving

just ahead of the music

her eyes focus on us

Miriam Borne

approaching rain —

the haycocks colonized

an old barn

Juhani Tikkanen

Swiftly moving

the plastic bag rises

to greet a new journey

Jenn McSweeney

moving . . .

river, the same

way

og_a

moving —

his neighbors' eyes

dripping with tears

Old Grayhouse

moving day

my memories

in the carton boxes

Jacek M.

after U-Haul trip —

one dead moth

and spilt paint

Marshall Bood

moving . . .

a third of my possessions

go into the dumpster

Anonymous

a moving van

at another neighbor's gate —

credit crunch saga

natalia Kuznetsova

House for sale,

flowers in the windows —

moving van.

Trevor Camp

yard sale to sell

his things that won't fit in her

new singles town house

gourdman

moving in —

hunting mothes

through memories

kaiser

first grandchild expected

at their new house I unpack

his tiny clothes

Elaine Riddell

bright sunday morning

a snail starts moving along

the scaffolding pole

Boris Nazansky

corporate troubleshooter

he explains to his young son

he too is the "new kid"

Edward

out of body

in slow motion

was it only a moment?

Judi Honiker

moving van . . .

so many monarchs

lost on the long way home

Bill Pauly

in the cardboard smell —

songs of them there

pines

Jon Espen Vassbotn

star gazing . . .

maybe they

will come to us

Francine Banwarth

new paint

new bedroom

the same bed

DeVar

from one city to the other

moving luggage is a hard task

quite an unhappy experience

Purush

titmouse cavorting

from a branch to another branch —

summer supper

Miorita

A callused hand

moving strokes a cheek

Awake from the solace of dreams

Christine Howard

General Comments:

There are so many wonderful submissions, I wanted to vote for more than the above!

Again, so many lovely haiku and deeply “moving” in all ways.

I am always attracted to those haiku which leave something unresolved, and so let the reader create her/his own story.