f/k/a . . .

It’s a home-alone-with-a-bad-cold kind of Friday night.  I even learned too late that September 29 is Michaelmas Day (and Goose Day) in Britain.   Since I can’t go visit them, I thought I’d invite a few haijin friends over for some Neil Young protest music, popcorn, cheap Merlot and a movie (V for Vendetta).

 

  Neil Young, “Living with War” (2006)

 

First, of course, a haiku appetizer:

 

 

Indian summer~
two tortoises stretch
toward shore

 

 
  
new kitten
the size
of her heartbeat

 

 

 
new year’s morning
I fold up
another calendar

 

. . . by Pamela Miller Ness

“Indian summer–” Nisqually Delta Review (editor’s choice, winter/spring 2006)
“new kitten” - Nisqually Delta Review (editor’s choice, winter/spring 2006)
“new year’s morning” - fish in love (HSA 2006); bottle rockets #15 (2006)

 

 
 

 

 
Michaelmas Day
mist takes back the blackberries
nobody picked

 

 

 

 
september wind
ash leaves follow
a swallow south

 

 

 

 
winter dawn
a tub of washing
all run blue

 

 
. . . by matt morden
“winter dawn” - The Heron’s Nest VIII:3 (Sept. 2006)
“Michaelmas Day” - Morden Haiku (Sept. 29, 2006)
“september wind” - Morden Haiku (Sept. 23, 2006)

 

 

 

 

 

peace march
the stone buddha’s
weathered face

 

 

 

 

 
out of the blue
the window washer
brightens my day

 

 

 

 
. . . by Tom Painting 
“peace march” - fish in love
“out of the blue” - Modern Haiku 37.2 (Summer 2006)

 

 

 

 
algebra class
at Columbine —
solving for y

 

 

 

 

 

sparkling May–
rowers pull together
on their oars

 

 
. . . by Barry George
“algebra class” simply haiku (Autumn 2006, vol. 4 no. 3)
“sparkling May–” - frogpond XXIX: 2 (2006)

 

 

 
on our pond –
the geese you chased
from your pond.
     from dagosan’s haiku diary

 

Frequent visitors may recall that haikuEsq did a little nagging last February – asking fellow haijin to join the Haiku Society of America and members to submit poems for inclusion in this year’s annual members’ anthology (which comes free with membership).    Well, the f/k/a Gang is pleased to announce the publication and arrival of:

 

  fish in love: Haiku Society of America Members’ Anthology 2006 (edited by Roberta Beary and Ellen Compton).  Many thanks to Ellen and Roberta for all their editorial efforts.   

fish in love didn’t achieve the size we had hope for in February, but it is nonetheless the largest anthology collection of members’ haiku to date — containing 228 poems from 228 members.   You can order a copy for $10 (for shipment in the US) or $12 (international), payable by check or money order to Paul Miller, HSA Treasurer.  Mail it to Paul at 31 Seal Island Road, Bristol, RI 02809-5186

 

Here are a few from some of f/k/a’s Honored Guests: 

 

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Michael Dylan Welch

stump speech

the red hills of Georgia

coloring a stream

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Peggy Willis Lyles

demolition site

the colors

of closet walls

. . . . . . . John Stevenson 

the sway

of platinum blondes —

cattails in the snow

. . . . dagsoan

 

 

There must be something special about the autumn equinox, with summer’s meteorological end and the coming of fall –they inspire many fine haiku.  

 

  The change of seasons seems to suit John Stevenson very well.  Snapshot Press just chose this poem to feature for September in its 2007 Haiku Calendar:

 

 

soaking autumn rain
certain thoughts
I can’t shrug off

This one by John garnered Honorable Mention in the same contest:    

sparrows sift through
the shopping carts
autumn dusk

 

 

Here’s one he wrote 2003:

 

end of summer

the warmth

of a borrowed shirt

  

  

  

 

  

. . .  by John Stevenson  

“soaking autumn rain” - Upstate Dim Sum; Wiinner 2006 Haiku Calendar Contest 

“sparrows sift through” - Modern Haiku; Honorable Mention, 2006 Haiku Calendar Contest

“end of summer”  - Upstate Dim Sum (2003/II) 

 

 

Michael Dylan Welch also celebrates autumn with a fine touch:

 

 

a table for one–

leaves rustle

in the inner courtyard

  

  

  

 

  

 

   

 

 

leaves turning —
the toboggan hanging
in the dark garage

  

  

      

 

   

 

 

                        

 

 

  

first cold night–

smell of hot dust

from the vent

. . . . . . . . . . . . by Michael Dylan Welch        

“a table for one” & “first cold night“  - Open Window, haiku and photo 

“leaves turning” The Heron’s Nest (Sept. 200 

 

 

  If you’re interested, we collected some autumn equinox haiku this time last year, and you can find more written this year at Falling Leaves.

Listening to the dvd “Neil Young Heart of Gold“ (directed by Jonathan Demme, 2006), a few nights ago, reminded me yet again that I love a simple, well-crafted song. Neil’s rendition of Ian Tyson’s classic folk song Four Strong Winds was especially moving for me. [see the lyrics of “Four Strong Winds” here] Once again, I wish I had listened to my heart and not gone blindly into law school 33 years ago. [Yes, I learned personally the folly of failing to self-assess before committing to a life in the law.] Instead, I ignored the repeated signals that writing a good lyric was far more important to me than writing a good brief.

“Four Strong Winds” inspired me to collect about one hundred haiku about wind, by two dozen of f/k/a’s Honored Guest Poets. You can find them here — haiku on the wind.

maple seeds spiraling —

cicada husk holds on

to the old swing rope

funeral procession . . .

snowflakes blowing

into the headlights

the pinwheel stops

grandpa catches

his breath

snowblind on the range:

homesteader feels

the barbwire home

Randy Brooks from School’s Out (Press Here, 1999)

“funeral procession” - Henderson Haiku Award, HSA 1998