Congratulations to Ignatius Fay and Michael Dylan Welch, winners of our Kigo section and to Israel López Balan, winner of our Free Format section!
August 2010 Results
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.