February 2010 Kukai
Congratulations to David Grayson, winner of our Kigo section and to Janice Hornburg and Catherine J.S. Lee, winners of our Free Format section!
February 2010 Results
Kigo Theme:
Groundhog Day
First Place — 30 Points
the hawk also waiting
for shadows —
Groundhog Day
David Grayson
(3,5,11) = 30 pts
All I can say is "I wish I had written that!"
Second Place — 21 Points
Groundhog Day
the trickle of water
under ice
Tom Painting
(0,2,17) = 21 pts
A rodent's shadow is not the only sign that matters.
Third Place — 19 Points
groundhog day
the shadows of road crews
patching chuck holes
Cindy Tebo
(0,4,11) = 19 pts
Fourth Place — 17 Points
cancer ward
he asks if the groundhog
saw his shadow
Bill Kenney
(2,2,7) = 17 pts
Groundhog Day —
her catalog open
to swimwear
Bill Pauly
(0,4,9) = 17 pts
Fifth Place — 16 Points
Groundhog Day
the pain in my knees
returns
polona
(0,4,8) = 16 pts
An amusing observation, but the arthritic knees are probably a lot more accurate than the groundhog!
I sure feel that one!
Sixth Place — 14 Points
Groundhog Day
the tarot reader tells me
what I already know
Collin Barber
(1,2,7) = 14 pts
A great comparison between the groundhog and the tarot reader - telling us what we probably know, if we'd only pay attention to what's around us.
groundhog day —
a lonely commuter emerges
from the subway
tori inu
(1,1,9) = 14 pts
As far as we know, that commuter has absolutely nothing to do with Groundhog Day or anything else, and that is precisely what makes this one work. A wonderful urban haiku.
Groundhog Day
I put the chains
back on my tires
Meredith Stern Cavalieri
(0,3,8) = 14 pts
Seventh Place — 13 Points
Groundhog Day
a hole in the clouds
brings my shadow back
Rafal Zabratynski
(1,3,4) = 13 pts
Groundhog Day
the dog wants out wants in
wants out
Melissa Spurr
(0,3,7) = 13 pts
Isn't that true to life. And a reflection on the groundhog's accuracy as a weather predictor.
no hurry
to sharpen the hoe —
groundhog day
A Dharma Bum
(0,3,7) = 13 pts
Eighth Place — 12 Points
Groundhog Day
the mail carrier’s shadow
underfoot
martin gottlieb cohen
(0,1,10) = 12 pts
Ninth Place — 11 Points
Groundhog Day . . .
shadow
of a doubt
Francine Banwarth
(1,1,6) = 11 pts
second month, second day
the tree's shadow
climbs the tree
Alan S. Bridges
(0,4,3) = 11 pts
groundhog day
my back door and front door
snowed in
Catherine J.S. Lee
(0,2,7) = 11 pts
Tenth Place — 10 Points
Groundhog Day...
the street vendor strokes
his five o'clock shadow
Elinor Pihl Huggett
(0,2,6) = 10 pts
Groundhog day
granddad's fish story
gets longer
Paul Hodder
(0,2,6) = 10 pts
Groundhog Day
my desk calendar
still last year’s
John Thompson
(0,0,10) = 10 pts
Eleventh Place — 9 Points
Groundhog Day —
on my grandfather’s face
a dream of spring
Kaiser
(1,2,2) = 9 pts
Groundhog Day —
barking at his own shadow
the new puppy
Carolyn Coit Dancy
(0,1,7) = 9 pts
groundhog day...
shadow of a hawk
passes over
Ruth Powell
(0,1,7) = 9 pts
Twelfth Place — 8 Points
six more winter weeks
the old dog declines
a walk
C.P. Harrison
(0,3,2) = 8 pts
Groundhog Day ::
six more weeks
of chemo
timothy russell
(0,2,4) = 8 pts
The shift in perspective is more powerful because of the starkness of expression.
Groundhog day —
a lot of people together
hoping to see nothing
Petru-Ioan Garda
(0,2,4) = 8 pts
Thirteenth Place — 7 Points
Groundhog Day —
a snail carrying
one melted snowflake
Manuela Dragomirescu
(1,1,2) = 7 pts
between blizzards groundhog day comes and goes
Roberta Beary
(1,1,2) = 7 pts
snow
under our shadows
Groundhog Day
jeff hoagland
(0,3,1) = 7 pts
groundhog day —
some jacarandas bloom
before others
Israel Lopez Balan
(0,2,3) = 7 pts
an old letter
has made me restless —
Ground Hog Day
Earl Randal Keener
(0,1,5) = 7 pts
Fourteenth Place — 6 Points
Groundhog Day
is school out today?
my son asks
Carmel Lively Westerman
(1,0,3) = 6 pts
Trust a kid to ignore convention in favor of what's really important!
fitting a blue piece
to dad’s jigsaw puzzle
—Groundhog Day
if
(0,1,4) = 6 pts
the view
from under the covers
Groundhog Day
Ann K. Schwader
(0,1,4) = 6 pts
Fifteenth Place — 5 Points
Groundhog's cake
he lights the candles --
no shadows
James Dobson
(1,1,0) = 5 pts
his birthday shadow
no more
early springs
carol pearce-worthington
(0,2,1) = 5 pts
ground hog's day plus three —
really wanting to wallop
Phil and his shadow
Hazel A. Witherspoon
(0,2,1) = 5 pts
Authentic, spontaneous, evocative and funny.
Ground Hog Day
furrows of dark earth
rise from the snow
Beth Powell
(0,2,1) = 5 pts
Groundhog Day
her pregnant shadow goes with her
back indoors
Garry Eaton
(0,1,3) = 5 pts
Sixteenth Place — 4 Points
Groundhog Day
only
the shadow knows
Donna Bauerly
(0,2,0) = 4 pts
Groundhog Day
these daffodils say
it's spring
Barbara Campitelli
(0,2,0) = 4 pts
groundhog day
a tiny shadow on global
warming
Terra Martin
(0,2,0) = 4 pts
groundhog
temperamental sundial
for a season
Elaine Riddell
(0,1,2) = 4 pts
groundhog day
the silent progress
of my own long shadow
jeanette blain
(0,0,4) = 4 pts
Seventeenth Place — 3 Points
Groundhog Day —
all these people expecting
to get the shadow
Radu Ignatescu
(1,0,0) = 3 pts
Groundhog Day
the end of three months
not shaving my legs
Laurene
(0,1,1) = 3 pts
stepping backward
on the heels of my shadow,
six weeks of winter
Chandra Bales
(0,1,1) = 3 pts
groundhog day
the drip-drip drip-drip
of icicles
max verhart
(0,1,1) = 3 pts
thick fur coat
sun glistens on snow
long shadow
charlie smith
(0,1,1) = 3 pts
Groundhog Day
the Iraq-bound plane
casts no shadow
Carlos Gesmundo
(0,1,1) = 3 pts
anniversary
my shadow seems to fall
in her's
Ralf Broker
(0,0,3) = 3 pts
groundhog day
I take my coffee
black
Ben Gieske
(0,0,3) = 3 pts
Love the possible interpretations with this haiku, although I'm thinking that the poet might need that black coffee to make it through another six weeks of winter!
Eighteenth Place — 2 Points
early morning sunshine
on groundhog day
before heavy snow storm
Jim Applegate
(0,1,0) = 2 pts
Groundhog Day
my petite shadow and I
take a walk at noon
anonymous
(0,0,2) = 2 pts
Groundhog Day —
I make two to-do lists,
telling no one
Michael McClintock
(0,0,2) = 2 pts
Groundhog Day
my shadow spreading
over the snow
Jacek M.
(0,0,2) = 2 pts
Groundhog Day
our backyard snowman's shadow
is missing an arm
Edward
(0,0,2) = 2 pts
Groundhog Day
he orders his eggs
over easy
anonymous
(0,0,2) = 2 pts
will you wait for me
a taxi honking
groundhog day
Dan Schwerin
(0,0,2) = 2 pts
Nineteenth Place — 1 Point
linger long shadows
groundhog day slumbering sun
beds snowy meadows
Keith Moser
groundhog day
our shadows on the
wall
Brenda Roberts
groundhog day...
a shadow in sight
winter deepens
Keith A. Simmonds
no groundhog shadow...
a farmer plows under
the last of the snow
Janice Hornburg
artificial sun
all the lights and cameras
shadow Groundhog Day
Deirdre Godwin
she wakes with
a gnawing hunger
...february 2
Diane Mayr
we stand in shadow
pressing close to stay warm
Groundhog Day
Harvey Jenkins
Groundhog Day,
contemptuous crow
struts by -
Kurt R. W.
Under ground
warm thoughts fill the nest
six more weeks.
Trevor Camp
February —
these daffodil shoots don’t care
about PA shadows
Bill Gottlieb
Groundhog Day morning —
Bob Dylan wakes
me up again
Tomislav Maretic
shadows —
looming winter trees
and a groundhog
Ellen Romano
ice, piled up
under the bridge ...
Groundhog Day
og_a
Mary's Candlemass
for the ground-hog, too, the snow
glist'ning in new sun
Horst Ludwig
shadow, no shadow —
six more weeks
timber wolves dying
anonymous
Groundhog Day —
our three year old scrawls his name
again and again
DeVar
No points this time. Sorry.
Groundhog Day: unheated gym:
the martial arts people step onto the mat
complaining of cold feet
Sheila K. Barksdale
right time to switch over
bidding a farewell to winter
ground hog — to burrow
Purush
Snow already on ground
No surprise
Phil sees his shadow
Mary E. Gray
Groundhog Day
noisy shadow by the trash
just the raccoon
maxianne berger
Groundhog Day
thinking how nice it is
reading by the warm fire
Bill Hudson
Snowman's prayer
to get some new snow —
Groundhog Day
Juhani Tikkanen
dark shadows prevail
the clairvoyant says
on Groundhog Day
Barbara A Taylor
Groundhog Day
unshelved again
in the aftershock
Barbara Snow
Ground Hog Day surprise —
no longer the only child,
baby sister born!
John Hubbard
Groundhog Day
long shadow
bare branches
goblet
early morning
shadows on the wall. . .
Groundhog Day
Marylouise Knight
groundhog day
dense snow covers the ground
and the sky
Tore Sverredal
tyres screech
almost knock over a badger
Groundhog Day
meow
6:00 AM
Still snowed in
try again
gourdman
he laughs the same laugh
at his same old jokes
groundhog day again
Frances McCarthy
the weatherman calls for sun
damn!
Groundhog's Day
Terri L. French
Groundhog Day --
my past the tallest shadow.
I stay inside.
mechaieh
Ground-Frog’s Day
the groundhog’s
been replaced
Deanna Tief
dazed groundhog
yoinked from warm slumber
blind as a mole
todd eddy
Groundhog Day
waking up, he wonders
whether it's saturday
Quamrul Hassan
groundhog day
introverted writers
throw a party
anonymous
playing with
stray cat by mirror …
Groundhog Day
Reza
Groundhogday
moss blooms
on a south slope
Marlene Buitelaar
A pine tree's shadow
falls on cold white snow.
The groundhog was wrong
Tom Conally
Free Format Theme: Hope
First Place — 29 Points
one silk thread...
in the rubble a spider
starts a new web
Janice Hornburg
(3,5,10) = 29 pts
This for me was the outstanding haiku this month. The tiny observation bearing huge meaning. Beautiful!
homeless shelter —
her wrinkled brochure
of Disneyworld
Catherine J.S. Lee
(1,6,14) = 29 pts
This is wonderfully poignant, showing both hope and a longing for the promise of childhood. In this, from a sad present, it looks both ways, backwards and forwards.< P> This one made me smile and made me sad. There is always hope.
Second Place — 27 Points
mid January
he tries a different set
of bathroom scales
Paul Hodder
(3,3,12) = 27 pts
Amusingly down to earth, showing more than telling.
A winning combination of dealing with a familiar truth with a touch of humor.
Third Place — 19 Points
after
the aftershock
one star
Francine Banwarth
(1,4,8) = 19 pts
Fourth Place — 18 Points
pea tendrils
find each other
to cling to
John Thompson
(2,1,10) = 18 pts
I love the pure, natural imagery of this one!
I love the fragility of this image.
Fifth Place — 17 Points
divorced
toast and an egg
sunny-side-up
Tom Painting
(2,3,5) = 17 pts
I like the subtle connation between the image and a recently divorced person. L3 does the trick.
refugee camp
searching for
a familiar face
Meredith Stern Cavalieri
(1,3,8) = 17 pts
I found myself hoping the person recognized someone!
holiday ceasefire
the street artist gives me
a smile
Collin Barber
(1,0,14) = 17 pts
An effective surprise in L3.
Sixth Place — 16 Points
cancer diagnosis
he buys season's tickets
to the symphony
Susan Constable
(0,2,12) = 16 pts
Seventh Place — 15 Points
forsythia buds —
the pause before opening
my SASE
Ellen Compton
(0,5,5) = 15 pts
Is there a writer out there who hasn’t experienced this moment?
Eighth Place — 14 Points
tenth birthday
the seeing eye dog
she asked for
Garry Eaton
(0,3,8) = 14 pts
This haiku just about brought a tear to my eye. Full of hope!
refugee camp —
kids playing tag
in the food line
Ruth Powell
(0,2,10) = 14 pts
Ninth Place — 13 Points
newborn nursery
her feeble cry
strengthens
Brenda Roberts
(1,4,2) = 13 pts
Tenth Place — 12 Points
a frog hopping
on a dry riverbed --
dark clouds
Isaac Ndirangu
(1,2,5) = 12 pts
chemotherapy —
on the sunny windowsill
tomato plants sprout
if
(0,2,8) = 12 pts
Eleventh Place — 11 Points
spring flowers
where we buried the cat . . .
moving day
Bill Kenney
(0,3,5) = 11 pts
Twelfth Place — 10 Points
query letters
twenty rejections
she buys more stamps
Carmel Lively Westerman
(0,2,6) = 10 pts
Thirteenth Place — 9 Points
midwinter
she dyes her hair
sunny blonde
Rafal Zabratynski
(0,2,5) = 9 pts
Fourteenth Place— 8 Points
winter wind —
the new e-mail
still empty
Israel Lopez Balan
(1,0,5) = 8 pts
sunlight
and Emily Dickinson
on the window seat
Chandra Bales
(0,1,6) = 8 pts
Fifteenth Place — 7 Points
runt of the litter
calling loudly from
the basement
carol pearce-worthington
(0,1,5) = 7 pts
snowed in
the sun melts
an icicle
Terra Martin
(0,1,5) = 7 pts
chemo
she refuses to lose
her smile
Beth Powell
(0,1,5) = 7 pts
Sixteenth Place — 6 Points
hoping for rain
ignored the lush wetness
of morning dew
Bridget Cougar
(2,0,0) = 6 pts
First hope
after the earthquake —
growing grass
Vasile Moldovan
(0,2,2) = 6 pts
children's hospital —
in mother's eyes
a baby's smile
Orbi
(0,2,2) = 6 pts
I hope this time I
win the free format kukai
but I know I won’t
Bill Gottlieb
(0,1,4) = 6 pts
All told, nothing shown - not exactly what I'd be normally looking for in a haiku or even senryu but it made me laugh out loud.
Seventeenth Place — 5 Points
distant shots
a pair of trumpeter swans
slowly recovering
Cindy Tebo
(1,0,2) = 5 pts
sound asleep
then a sudden burst
of daffodils
Elinor Pihl Huggett
(0,2,1) = 5 pts
old sanctuary
she names the newborn
john hope jr
Quamrul Hassan
(0,2,1) = 5 pts
longest day —
hope is the thing
with feathers
Nancy Smith
(0,2,1) = 5 pts
retracing my steps
to ogle her again
candle shop
Earl Randal Keener
(0,1,3) = 5 pts
morphine drip —
at last father's hand
squeezes back
Roberta Beary
(0,1,3) = 5 pts
stomach grumbling
she scours the pantry
one more time
M.E. Fredericks
(0,1,3) = 5 pts
Eighteenth Place — 4 Points
after earthquake's waves —
a tick-tock sound and a voice
under the ruins
Radu Ignatescu
(1,0,1) = 4 pts
lapdogs on a bridge
rainbow ribbons
on stagnant water
Sheila K. Barksdale
(0,2,0) = 4 pts
after the hurricane
the sunrise
C.P. Harrison (0,1,2) = 4 pts
a picture tucked
beneath Santa's cookies
...Christmas eve
Diane Mayr
(0,1,2) = 4 pts
5 pm
sun still glinting
off the River
Donna Bauerly
(0,1,2) = 4 pts
unzipping
her little black
hope
Dan Schwerin
(0,1,2) = 4 pts
a family crowds
the hospital
waiting room
Ellen Romano
(0,0,4) = 4 pts
Nineteenth Place -- 3 Points
chrysalis
broken open -
orange wings
Alexander "Lex" Joy
(0,1,1) = 3 pts
hair growing back
where the surgeon shaved it
winter's end
Melissa Spurr
(0,0,3) = 3 pts
Almost a case of "too much information," but hope is where you find it.
morning of the final
mother folds
his lucky socks
Ralf Broker
(0,0,3) = 3 pts
Kentucky Derby —
my horse in a
photo-finish
James Dobson
(0,0,3) = 3 pts
first blossoms —
a balding man buys
a predictor test
max verhart
(0,0,3) = 3 pts
slow approach
to the pretty girl
sitting at the dance
Bill Pauly
(0,0,3) = 3 pts
armistice —
a chestnut tree blossoms again
among ruins
Kaiser
(0,0,3) = 3 pts
snow melting
amaryllis and hope
bloom again
charlie smith
(0,0,3) = 3 pts
Twentieth Place — 2 Points
may valleys of death
worn by waterfalls of pain
be kissed by hope's breath
Keith Moser
(0,1,0) = 2 pts
Around falling leaves
a lone dreaming flower —
mid-February
R.K. SINGH
(0,1,0) = 2 pts
a toddler
stands beside her stroller
gestures for others to pass
Leah Ann Sullivan
(0,1,0) = 2 pts
sunrise —
the morning glory
opens up
Peter Nguribu
(0,1,0) = 2 pts
yellow ribbons
on kids' forefingers
last deployment
Carlos Gesmundo
(0,1,0) = 2 pts
Mother Nature
in cataclysmic mood...
miracles for Haiti
Keith A. Simmonds
(0,0,2) = 2 pts
looking up
from bible
to the Cross
meow
(0,0,2) = 2 pts
day three —
wanting a sign
when the phone rings
anonymous
(0,0,2) = 2 pts
Olympic hopeful
cherry blossoms
in the rain
andrea
(0,0,2) = 2 pts
heart monitor —
blips... blips... blips...
my hand gets a squeeze
tori inu
(0,0,2) = 2 pts
more silent
than feathers
hope softens my footprints
mechaieh
(0,0,2) = 2 pts
dark clouds —
my father cleaning
the gutters
James Bundi
(0,0,2) = 2 pts
dark clouds —
a farmer preparing
seedbeds
Teresiah Njeri
(0,0,2) = 2 pts
waiting room
filled with patients' families
and hope
freddy gier
(0,0,2) = 2 pts
Dripping Honey Pear
crisp, sweet, and delicious.
Spring Seeds Catalog
Horst Ludwig
(0,0,2) = 2 pts
Twenty-First Place — 1 Point
ascending the mountain
there is, at least
hope
Alan S. Bridges
Valentine's Day
on the winter heather blooms
a hint of pink
anonymous
dawn still dark:
sings though
the bird
vishnu p kapoor
young bride —
first dinner at home
with her in-laws
Carolyn Coit Dancy
wear a pink ribbon
praying that a cure be found
home for Mother’s Day
Deirdre Godwin
missing in action...
praying for a miracle,
adamant
natalia kuznetsova
breaths of disbelief —
between fallen concrete
four wriggling fingers
Barbara A Taylor
the rain comes
flooding the gutters —
blessed coolness
Marylouise Knight
Early spring
we meet at sundown —
hopeful smiles.
Trevor Camp
home from war
the hope of water
after sand
Laurene
hope,
eyeing his tea leaves
as if I could know
jeanette blain
fresh tracks mar the snow
zig-zagging from drift to drift
rabbit seeks green grass
todd eddy
shuffling through
new seed packets
late flakes
Ann K. Schwader
sunrise —
the minister baptizing
new believers
Eric Mwange
maternity ward —
an expectant mother
unpacking napkins
Elkana Mogaka
early February —
office after office he
looks for a job
Duncan Omoto
hot afternoon —
he smiles out of an
exam room
Joab Nyawate
Ice-cream cart
If dad was
here
Reza
wrensong
her touch of the keys
more secure
Marlene Buitelaar
the hope of mankind
is engendered in the young,
spring comes soon
Tom Conally
shoe rack
i move boots to the back
bring sandals forward
miriam chaikin
No points this time. Sorry.
hopes do spring and sprout
irrespective of season
they deserve our praise
Purush
rain swept night . . .
at her window a woman
burning with love
Michael McClintock
plow field for hay
snow capped mountain
promise crop
Jim Applegate
magnolia blossoms —
he informs
about cancer remission
Jacek M.
evening chill
glowing embers
spark of hope
Ben Gieske
Cold arctic wind —
a hope
for an iceberg
Juhani Tikkanen
parched prairie pastures
he shields his eyes
she whispers, Thunder?
Edward
after the earthquake -
many people have
only hope
Andrzej Dembonczyk
groundhog's shadow...
yet, a rosy hint
on that gray plum
Barbara Snow
darkness, cold,
a sound...a flicker?
hope reborn
John Hubbard
bottom of the lake
one last gulp of car's air
before heading up
Harvey Jenkins
sudden burst of rain
breaking the long silence
he asks her out
Tore Sverredal
grim prognosis
extending a lifeline
your medication
Elaine Riddell
Sunshine in February
witch hazel scented breeze
gourdman
tip of bud
swells on the birch bough
looking forward
Frances McCarthy
letting her granddaughter paint
flowers on her bald head
Life!
Terri L. French
hard times
killing a lot of friends —
Hope died the last
Petru-Ioan Garda
muddy yard -
suddenly, despite the clouds
the Sun all over
Manuela Dragomirescu
World AIDS Day —
around the globe
so many hopes
Tomislav Maretic
the snow storm falls
leaving its soft peace
a breath of fresh air!
Jeanne Fiedler
Valentine date
with a HIV/AIDS person —
the radiance in her eyes
Patrick
spring rain
weather forecast
sun
Barbara Campitelli
huge snowstorms in NYC...
in Rochester
a flock of robins
Deanna Tief
mid-winter snow
brings hope
of an early spring
A Dharma Bum
cloudy day —
students transplanting
seedlings
Joseph Kilunda
hot sunrise —
warm vapour rising
up in the sky
Faith Achieng
fairy lights
sparkling in the shop —
grey January dawn
Isabelle Prondzynski
law house —
students queue to get
birth certificates
Angeline Muthoki
fierce sunshine —
step after step she plants
her seedlings
Violet Wangira
February thirteenth —
telling my broken hearted friend
yes....she will survive
Hazel A. Witherspoon
cosmic convergence —
Valentines/Chinese New Year
chocolate love and good fortune
anonymous
all star weekend
the old basketball star
limps down the hall
DeVar
leaving ...
ah, venus,
my friend!
og_a
old bridge —
as soon breaks
ice
goblet
General Comments:
Not coming from the Anglo-Saxon environment (although familiar with the symbolism of groundhog day), I was a bit skeptical about the selected kigo but it turned out I enjoyed many of the poems and had a hard time selecting the few to award my points to.
Many fine shadows.
The relatively small number of entries (under 100, as against 119 in the free format category) suggests that we found "Groundhog Day" a difficult kigo to work with. I'm especially pleased, then, that my short list was longer than usual.
The shadow motif was so common in these – it was good to find some haiku that didn’t use it, or used it somewhat unexpectedly.
Thank you for your work. This was a fun theme to work with.
So many good poems here. Very difficult to decide.
Again, I had a hard time - but also fun - selecting these after paring down the list to a dozen or so.
I found that the most successful entries did not include the word "hope." I'll be interested in seeing if the results suggest that I'm alone in this.
It wasn't easy to choose!
Tough theme for a good poem.
Well done, everyone. It was hugely enjoyable assessing your 118 Free Format haiku. I preferred those that I thought showed a juxtaposition of two clear images and contained a kireji and those where "hope" was hinted at, not openly stated.