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MITSUAKI KOJIMA |
Haikuists have penned their New Year greetings, and as Satoru Kanematsu implies with his haiku, are raring to write more haiku this year. John Martone rang in the New Year thinking of Buddha and the winter sparrows in his hometown of Charleston, Illinois.
these night walks;
each fog droplet
Buddha-field
home late
front-door sparrows
already asleep
It has been extremely cold in Kawasaki and other areas in central Japan this winter, notes Anna Akamatsu. She feels sorry for the little sparrows outside her nursing home window. The birds swell their feathers to buffet the winds and maintain a warm layer of air next to their bodies. Yutaka Kitajima is also snowbound in Joetsu, Niigata: He poses a rhetorical question to the little birds.
ievic with graceful strokes of her pen.
Cold morning
a swollen sparrow
on a tree
Cold sparrows
what do you see in
the New Year?
Shizuka Yukino prefers following the striking motions of brightly colored kingfishers in Kanto region rivers. Paul Faust focused on the antics of a snowy white egret when he went bird-watching in Hyogo.
Kingfisher, in low
from across the river
a cold lunch
Among ducks, an egret
prancing proudly here-and-there
flicks snow from its wings
Sakiko Morris joins us for the first time from Westerview, Ohio. She says she studied to be a musician and keeps a diary and composes haiku to cherish precious moments from her past. Writing from Aomori, Tatsuko Toshima also often reminisces about younger days. In another of her haiku she mentioned it was snowing yet again in the northern regions, so she let out a "sorrowful moan."
Pacific voyage
Seattle in September
47 years passed
Nostalgia;
roasted ginkgo nuts
freshest green
Writing from Akita, Hidenori Hiruta says his New Year resolution is to start writing again even though he is currently facing some difficulties. Sagami Matsuda similarly offered his best wishes to the citizens of Osaka who turn 20 this year.
Renewed wish
making my own way
through deep snow
Coming of Age
deeper snow ahead
no way to return
This next haiku by Noriko Yoshida concludes on a happier note, she says she has found a surefire way to beat the cold weather this year in Tokyo.
First snowy day
smelling sweet potato
all the way home
Want to try composing haiku ?
Back numbers
The next issue of the Asahi Haikuist Network appears Feb. 4. Haiku about upcoming festivals, such as the Chinese New Year (Jan. 29) and Valentine's Day (Feb. 14) are especially welcome. Readers are invited to send haiku to David McMurray at the International Herald Tribune/Asahi Shimbun 5-3-2 Tsukiji, Tokyo 104-8011, or by fax to 03-5541-8539.
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ASAHI WEEKLY