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In this issue of World Haiku Review, we take up three haiku anthologies. One of the effective ways of talking about them is to extract some of those haiku poems which I like very much and which I regard to be excellent examples not only of the author’s works but also of the genre. It is after all the best haiku of any poet that will be remembered and with luck stand the test of time. For some lucky haiku poets the best is derived at a rate of one in a hundred. For others it may be one in a thousand.
[1] From: Inside Out by Christopher Herold
(The details of his anthology at the end of the quoted poems)
writer’s block
the first kernel of popcorn
turns inside out
first light
everything in this room
was already here
first rain
swelling into their frames
the doors of autumn
morning drizzle
my wife bends an orchid
to her will
the muddy path
followed by my dog
follows him inside
windowpane
every raindrop has a light
and a dark side
silence through dinner
salt and pepper figurines
back to back
not quite dawn
someone stops trying
to start a car
bright morning sun
venetian blinds restripe
the tabby
window warmth
flies that came in yesterday
want out
incense smoke…
unperturbed, the mosquitoes
come and go
bell ending zazen
everyone begins to move
except the spider
before we enter
after we leave
the meditation room
elevator silence –
our eyes escape
into numbers
spring meadow
the cows
all bowing
cat sprawled on the porch
I stroke
the warm spring sun
walking the dirt road
she in her rut, I in mine
downpour…
the one sound of so many
surfaces
desert highway –
in the distance, vultures settle
into a mirage
slow rhythm
the cow’s rough tongue
sculpting a salt block
dusk
with nowhere to turn
sunflower
[Some details of this anthology : Inside Out, Christopher Herold, Introduction by Paul David Mena, ISBN 978-I-893959-96-5, 2010, $12, Red Moon Press, USA www.redmoonpress.com ]
[2] From: Peeling an Orange by Peggy Heinrich
(The details of her anthology at the end of the quoted poems)
first day of spring
in pockets of snow melt
tips of white crocus
river bank
clumps of fern bend over
their reflection
deep in the woods
shoots from a fallen redwood
aims for the sun
just knowing
the velvet feel of pansies
without touching
overturned rock
hundreds of ants scurry
in the sudden light
daily walk
magnolia petals
slow my steps
old photos:
my father’s face
younger than mine
summer pond
practicing mindfulness
with this bull frog
raspberry patch –
retracting a scratched arm
and three ripe berries
asleep in the hammock –
a gentle breeze
turns the book’s page
long summer day
thousands of sunflowers
slowly turn west
holding my breath
until the cormorant
resurfaces
upside down snail
righting itself on my palm
over and over
flowering garden
this dry patch
where nothing will grow
carelessly,
brushing away a fly
into a cobweb
around the pond
at each footstep
a frog jumps in
lone heron
staring through its reflection
deep into the pond
heat wave
slowing down
the ticks of the clock
from a sick bed
the empty birdfeeder
longest day
humid afternoon
across the wooden floor
our shadows merge
after the storm
forgetting how the walls shook
summer moon
end of summer
the shape of his feet
in his empty sneakers
ebb tide
turning to look back
at my footprints
half-empty bed
I try to recall
his faults
packing up his clothes
giving away everything
giving away
autumn breeze –
the gliding yellow bird
turns into a leaf
moving day
where the feeder once stood
finches pick at seeds
mountain path –
far below, chimney smoke
blends into the mist
fresh sea breeze
the mimosa he planted
tall enough to wave
seagull
flapping against the wind
then trusting it
late afternoon
these small beach stones
such long shadows
after the concert
music keeps swirling
- autumn wind
November evening
a cushion of moonlight
on his empty chair
snow-covered valley
the sun fills footprints
with shadow
steaming tub bath –
a wipe of the window
reveals whirling snow
long winter night
your hand between my legs
the warmth
frozen puddle
faces on an old front page
stare through ice
family gathering
jigsaw pieces
fall into place
after many months
spreading his ashes…
the lilacs he planted
shrinking snowman
the red wool scarf
loosens its grip
January sunset
putting aside her journal
to peel an orange
around the fire
the widening circle
of silence
[Some details of this anthology : Peeling An Orange: Haiku, Peggy Heinrich, Photographs by John Bolivar, 2009, ISBN 978-1-935398-12-7, $11.95, Modern English Tanka Press, USA www.themetpress.com publisher@themetpress.com ]
The third anthology is one by myself.
Ushizu (Oxford) no Zaregoto by Ryuseki (Susumu) Takiguchi
(The details of his anthology at the end of the quoted poems)
saikai no uzu ni furi-komu hana-fubuki
into the vortices
of the Western Sea, fall
cherry petal drifts
ki-musume no hajirai ni nite hatsu-zakura
the first flowering
of the cherry, somewhat like
a bashful maiden
tanpopo no warai sazameku nani-yue ni
dandelions,
shaking with laughter…
why?
yawarakaku hana mo chirasanu konuka-ame
so soft that
no cherry petals are affected,
Scotch mist…
age-hibari koku itten to naru sokyu ni
becoming a black dot
into the immense blue sky…
a skylark
shira-ume ya nioi toke-komu naya no kabe
white plum blossom…
the fragrance penetrates into
the barn walls
ippen no rakka da ni naki shiba no niwa
in my garden I see
not a single cherry petal
on the green lawn
shundei ya kino no wadachi kyo mo fumu
spring mud…
I am treading the same rut
as yesterday’s
hi ni tsure te maki-agari yuku fuji no hana
everyday
it spirals up,
wisteria
furu-ido ya kawazu tobikomu nigori on
old well…
a frog jumps in
muddy sound
mushi no ne wo haru kiku yoi no indo kana
in India
I found myself listening to crickets
in the spring twilight
olive no ha kara yami e to tobu hotaru
from olive leaves
into darkness, fireflies
fly
hisui-iro Majorca to no natsu no umi
emerald colour…
the summer sea of
Mallorca
ka ni kuware Shakespeare wo miru yo kana
the night of
enjoying a Shakespeare play…
being bitten by mosquitoes
natsu-zora ni oshi-damari taru kyoseki kana
megaliths
under the summer sky
remain silent
shin-jaga ya tsuchi no nioi mo tomo ni kuu
new potatoes…
I eat the smell of
earth, too
sakuranbo saigo no hitotsu yuzuri au
large bowlful of cherries;
you have it, no, you have it,
the last one
ko-usagi no senobi shite kuu natsu no kusa
summer grasses…
baby bunnies nibble at them
standing on tiptoe
ban-ken no osore ononoku hatata-gami
my watchdog,
trembling with fear…
thunder
mezamashi wo tome te ro-o naku wo shiru
I stop the alarm clock
to learn a bush warbler
has been singing
oitsuke ba mata saki ni tobu michi-oshie
each time I catch up
it hops further forward…
a cricket
zenzan no haura hikareru natsu-arashi
the whole mountain
showing the back of leaves glittering…
summer storm
kyaku-ashi no to-noku koten hashiri-zuyu
rainy season starting…
visibly the number of visitors down,
my painting exhibition
tsuyu no yo mo nagaki mono kawa natsu no yoru
this ephemeral life of ours…
nonetheless what a long summer’s night
it is tonight!
hisa-bisa no asobi-gokoro ya kusaya tobu
flying about,
grass arrows in the air…a show of
rare childlike playfulness
hana-yome no kesho nagaruru atsusa kana
alas, the make-up
of the bride running down…
this terrible heat!
mono ni umi hito ni umi taru tsuyu no hibi
weary of things
and weary of human beings…
long rainy days
utsukushiki ojo mimakari natsu hatenu
beautiful princess
has passed away, summer
also ended
ichijo ga tenchi wo tsunagu aki no taki
a single line
connecting heaven and earth…
autumn waterfall
berurin no kabe ni motare te tsukimi kana
leaning against
the Berlin wall, I view
the moon
berurin no seki haraware shi natsu no kaze
the checkpoint
of Berlin gone… the summer wind
passes through
nezumi-ra to yadoru benisu no yonaga kana
long night…
with rodents I am sharing
the hotel in Venice
yasu-yado no ka ni kuware tsutsu tsuki aogu
at a cheap inn,
constantly bitten by mosquitoes
I look up the moon
nowaki kite haidopaaku wa ki no funbo
overnight storm…
The Hyde Park has become
a cemetery of trees
jagaimo no shushoku ni nare-shi waga mi kana
potatoes…
now I am used to them as
my staple diet
kari naite fubo wa kokyo ni tabi-tachi nu
the honking
of flying geese…my parents
have also flown away
shuko ni tsuki shitagai te umi kamome
following
the autumn cultivation…
seagulls
aki kinu to ochi-shi ringo no kazu de shiru
autumn has arrived…
I know that, by the number of
fallen apples
aki take te kyoshi wo ronze-shi issho naru
the height of autumn…
my book has now been published
on Kyoshi Takahama
kotori-ra no kui-nokoshi taru nashi wo kuu
I eat the part
of a pear left unpecked
by the birds
man-getsu ni miokurare tsutsu iku chichi zo
my father
has passed away…watched
by the full moon
haha gokyu ware shinobi-naku yowa no aki
my mother wails,
silently I cry …
autumn evening
neko mo inu mo ichi wo sadame te hekiro kana
my cat and dogs
know their places before
the fireplace
winzaa kojo no moyuru kan no ame
cold rain…
the old castle on fire
at Windsor
seki sure ba kokyo no chichi no oto nari-ki
I cough…
the same sound as my father’s
at home in Japan
fuyu-sobi nakaba hiraki te ite ni keri
winter roses…
half open, and then
got frozen
hatsu-yuki ya keishu sakka no iki shi hi ni
first snow…
fallen on the day Iris Murdoch
passed away
kutsushita no ana wo toshi te kan nokoru
the remaining cold…
I feel it through a hole
of my sock
yasu-uri ya iranu erimaki mata kainu
bargain sale…
I end up in buying yet another
unnecessary scarf
yuki-ore no oto wo kiki tsutsu yomosugara
all through the night
hearing branches breaking …under
the weight of snow
chuzuri ka uite oru no ka fuyu no tsuki
is it suspended
in mid-air, or floating?
the winter moon
haku hodo ni fuki-modori yuku ochiba kana
as I sweep
the fallen leaves
get blown back
kuchi-shi ha wo nozoke ba soko ni kan-sumire
removing a rotten leaf,
I find a winter violet
in bloom
harubaru to tsure-soi-shi kana fuyu urara
warm winter day…
what a long time we
have been together!
hito wo sake kareno ni asobu kodoku kana
avoiding people,
I enjoy being in the withered field…
solitude
shinasete to iware nirami-shi haru no yoi
give me a hug
and let me go…my dying wife asked me;
I just stared into spring dusk
saigo no iki kiitazo tsuma yo haru no yoru
I sure did hear
your last breath, my dear wife…
spring night
sini-gao no uruwashiki kana yowa no haru
how beautiful
your death face is…
the night of spring!
pitiful…
my wife passed away without
viewing cherry blossoms
henderu no kanashiki uta ya shigure-zora
a sad song
by Handel fills
the rainy sky
harusame ya boroboro naku zo kono ware mo
spring rain…
shamelessly I will
cry too
nani kuu mo hitori nomi kawa hana-gumori
whatever I eat,
it’s only one helping…
cloudy day
dasu gomi mo hitori-bun nari haru no asa
even the rubbish,
only from one person…
spring morning
tsuma no ji no reshipi yomitsutsu natsu-ryouri
a summer dish
I cook, following the recipe
in my wife’s handwriting
bosai no koppu ni mo tsugu biiru kana
I pour some beer
into my late wife’s glass
as well
dokugo shite aki saburu niwa shouyo su
autumnal garden…
I take a walk here and there,
talking to myself
hitori-mi ni cho-tokudai no fusuma kaku
all on my own…
I cover myself with
the king-size duvet
samayoe ba tsuma ni aeru ka kiri no naka
if I got lost
would I perhaps meet my wife
in this fog?
fuyu ginga aoge do tsuma wa kaerazaru
I look up longingly
the winter galaxy, but my
late wife never returns
kogoto iu aite koishi ya samuki haru
missing someone
at whom I can grumble…
cold spring
tsure-sote yuku mono mo nashi fuyu no tabi
no one
to accompany me…
my winter journey
haru no no ni tsuma no hai maku waga te kana
my hand,
scattering wife’s ashes…
spring field
himaraya no yama warai ware tsuma omou
the mountains
of the Himalayas look smiling,
as I think of my wife
tsuma koe ba taajimaharu ni haru no tsuki
spring moon
over Taj Mahal, as I
miss my wife
[Some details of this anthology : Ushizu (Oxford) no Zaregoto , or The Twaddle of An Oxonian, Ryuseki (Susumu) Takiguchi, all in Japanese, illustrations by the author, published by The World Haiku Club, Ami-Net Oxford International Press, UK, created and printed by Geibun-do, Sk-i Corporation, Sasebo, Japan, ISBN 978-4-902863-18-5, 200 pp, 2010, Yen 4,500]
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