summer's end

the tang of hot tar
carries on a breeze --
summer's end

kitbag

a homeless couple
taking in the sun -
coats in the kitbag

DQ

frost tonight -
the man at the dairy queen
lets out a yawn

coat rack

first spring day -
coats, all on the rack,
black, blue and gray

A Hundred Gourds 4:2

A Hundred Gourds 4:2 released


The seasons roll around. Today, the first of March, Australia and New Zealand welcome our first day of Autumn whilst those of you in the Northern Hemisphere are anticipating Spring’s arrival. Wherever you are in the world, the 14th issue of A Hundred Gourds, a quarterly journal of haiku, haibun, haiga, tanka and renku poetry is now online for your reading pleasure.


www.ahundredgourds.com


AHG 4.2 Feature –


The Seabeck Haiku Getaway: an interview with Michael Dylan Welch

Aubrie Cox, our haiga editor, was on the spot for the annual Seabeck Haiku Getaway, which is held in the beautiful, historical mill town of Seabeck in Washington, USA, close to the Canadian border. Aubrie has conducted an in- depth interview on the subject of this enviable retreat with the founder and organiser, Michael Dylan Welch.


Expositions Section


Due to the unexpected departure of Matthew Paul as Expositions editor last year, A Hundred Gourds will be looking for a suitable editor for our Expositions section in 2015. Please direct any inquiries regarding the Expositions section and submit reviews, essays or commentaries for 2015 issues of AHG to me, Lorin, until further notice.

In this issue, Michael Dylan Welch explores the use of haiku in David Patneaude’s young-adult novel, Thin Wood Walls, Jim Sullivan comments on two ‘bee’ haiku and Cynthia Rowe and Ray Rasmussen review recently published haiku books.


Submissions Deadline

The deadline for all submissions to AHG 4.3 (the June 2015 issue) is March 15th. AHG has an open submissions policy: any submissions received after the deadline will be filed for consideration for the September 2015 issue. Please check our submissions page for details and editors’ guidelines.

Please take the time to read the AHG submissions page, including the editors’ individual comments, and ensure that your submission complies with all requirements.

Lorin Ford – Managing Editor

ahundredgourds

John Carley 1955 - 2013

It's been almost a year since my father passed and I'd like to share some of the haiku he wrote in his final year with friends; with the hope that they will also post the poems in the appropriate places. Consulting with my sister, I've chosen four complete pieces and one which may be unfinished or purposefully formatted to run as a single line, perhaps to reflect the experience of reading in Japanese.

As I read them, and the file creation dates support this, there is a piece here for each season - Winter back through to winter. On our cold and wet island, this is the pattern a calendar year takes. All this said, I profess no comparable understanding of the art form and may be on the wrong track. Regardless, I feel the pieces read well when presented in the order offered here.

We've had a difficult year as a family, but one characterised by a determination to move together as a family and look at the beauty and opportunities that life offers. As the anniversary approaches, it helps me to know others are thinking of him. To that end, the pieces are offered below.

Happy seasons greeting and a very happy new year,

Alex Carley






my bedroom wall I conjure up a snowdrop




an Easter flame
is burning in my chest —
the night sweats come




this curving beach —
the space between
silence and birdsong




all I need are mountains
and a hedgehog —
autumn deepens




sitting by the fire
I make peace with the moon —
softly, softly, night

beneath the starling's
murmuration ...
she lets out a giggle

on a cold day
you can see for miles -
today's moon


>>>

whom shall it be,
the last man standing?
Autumn deepens



...

Indian Summer -
a peck of loose chickens
on the side of the road

Black-Eyed Susan

all across town,
an avenue passes through -
brownfields and black-eyed Susans

GENJUAN INT'L HAIBUN CONTEST

幻住庵　GENJUAN INTERNATIONAL HAIBUN CONTEST

Genjuan is the name of the cottage near Lake Biwa where, in 1690, Basho lived for a time. His residence in this ‘Vision-Inhabited Cottage’ was probably the happiest period of his life, and it was there that he wrote his most famous short haibun. The purpose of the Contest is to encourage the writing of fine haibun in English and maintain the connection between the traditional Japanese perception of haibun and what is evolving around the world. The judges are hoping that the Contest will continue to receive a warm response from all haibun writers. The award for the Grand Prix remains the same – a good replica of a Hokusai ukiyo-e print – and smaller gifts will be sent to the An (Cottage) Prize-winners. The writers of all the decorated works will receive a certificate of merit. We sincerely look forward to your participation.

Guidelines for 2015

1 Subject: Free.
2 Style: No restrictions, but special attention must be paid to honour the spirit of haikai.
3 Length: In total, between 10 and 40 lines (at one line = 80 spaces; a 3-line haiku counts as 3 lines).
4 Haiku/Title: At least one haiku (no formal restrictions) should be included and each piece should be given a title, however short.
5 Format: Print on one sheet of A4-size paper (and use the reverse if long) and write at the bottom your name (and your pen name, if you have one) together with your address, telephone number, and email address. Your privacy will be strictly protected, and the judges will not see your names until the result has been decided.
6 Deadline: All entries should reach the following address between 1 October 2014 and 31 January 2015. Please send your entries to: Ms. Eiko Mori, 2-11-23-206 Jokoji, Amagasaki-shi, Hyogo-ken 660-0811, Japan. Entries received after this date might not be accepted. Kindly avoid sending by express and using extra-large envelopes. Best write your home address on your envelope, too.
7 Entry Fee: None.
8 Restrictions: Entrants can send up to three entries. They should be unpublished and not under consideration elsewhere. As we cannot return your entries after screening, please retain your own copies.
9 Questions: All queries should be sent to the address above or by email to moriemori55@yahoo.co.jp Email Ms. Mori 2 weeks after sending your entries if you wish to have an acknowledgement of receipt.
10 Judges: Toshinori (Nenten) Tsubouchi, Stephen Henry Gill, Hisashi Miyazaki
11 Special Request: The authors of the decorated works will later be requested to send us their works by email. In this, we expect your cooperation.
12 Results: The results and the judges’ comments will be sent to all entrants in spring. Results will also be displayed on the Icebox http://hailhaiku.wordpress.com/.

dialing 9 - 1 - 1
but nobody answers --
blood moon

quilted jackets

late for the season
a daisy's bright bloom -
 quilted jackets

to my surprise
she hands me a feather --
withering frost

my favorite ladies

that tall girl,
peace symbols on her pockets --
Harvest Festival

Harvest Moon Viewing Party 2014

from red to black,
loose leaves and pitted brick --
the thirteenth night





****************************************************************************

You are cordially invited to our moon viewing party of 2014! The full moon rises Tuesday, September 9th, GMT.

To submit a poem (each submission remains the property of its author)
you may email us here: HAIKU BANDIT SOCIETY or post in comments.

Please include your pen name so we might accredit your poem properly. Happy moon gazing!




****************************************************************************




honeycomb moon --
the rain so sticky
on their faces


Ljudmila Hristova

















lunar mountains sketched in cloud
our words
revoked

comrade harps

A Hundred Gourds 3:4 online now

The 12th issue of A Hundred Gourds, a quarterly journal of haiku, haibun, haiga, tanka and renku poetry is now online for your reading pleasure.

www.ahundredgourds.com


In Memoriam


It was with great sadness in April this year that we read the police confirmation that Martin Lucas, haiku poet and editor and publisher of the British haiku journal, Presence, had drowned. Martin’s articulate insight into what makes good haiku is irreplaceable
​ and his voice is very much missed​. Matthew Paul, ​​along ​ with Stuart Quine and Ian Storr,​ ​will be continuing Presence​.​ ​ ​It is fitting that Matthew Paul has written an insightful personal appreciation of Martin and his work for this issue of A Hundred Gourds.​


Submissions Deadline


The deadline for all submissions to AHG 4.1 (the December 2014 issue) is September 15th. AHG has an open submissions policy: any submissions received after the deadline will be filed for consideration for the December 2014 issue. Please check our submissions page for details and editors’ guidelines.


Please take the time to read the AHG submissions page and ensure that your submission complies.

Lorin Ford – Haiku Editor, Managing Editor,
for the Editorial Team, A Hundred Gourds

beans and corn

beans and corn
straddle a broken fence --
shorter days



>>>

the war
as presented on YouTube --
summer squalls





New Resonance 9

summer clouds --
not enough paint to hide
the graffiti





New Resonance 9

A Hundred Gourds 3:3

The eleventh issue of A Hundred Gourds, a quarterly journal of haiku, haibun, haiga, tanka and renku poetry is now online for your reading pleasure.

http://www.ahundredgourds.com/


As well as our regular Haiku, Tanka, Renku, Haiga, Haibun and Expositions sections, AHG 3.3 features:


Issa’s Humanity and Humour: A Haibun Passage from His Travel Journal Oraga Haru


Everyone loves Issa’s haiku for their immediacy and evidence of his seemingly simple humanity, yet we don’t always pause long enough to study the context that might expand our appreciation. Ray Rasmussen, one of the four founders of A Hundred Gourds, returns as guest author of this issue’s feature, an in-depth study of one of Issa’s haibun passages. Ray demonstrates that the time taken to read and reflect more thoroughly brings great rewards to readers.


Submissions Deadline

The deadline for all submissions to AHG 3.4 (the September 2014 issue) is June 15th. AHG has an open submissions policy: any submissions received after the deadline will be filed for consideration for the December 2014 issue. Please check our submissions page for details and editors’ guidelines.


Lorin Ford – Haiku Editor, Managing Editor,
for the Editorial Team, A Hundred Gourds

birdsong -
I log on to her blog
to see what she dreams

thicket

sparrows in the thicket -
all the words I've written,
most forgotten


>>>