MITSUAKI KOJIMA

Haikuists pay tribute to the elderly in their poems composed for Respect-for-the- Aged Day.

Mototaka Yamakami notes the holiday is the first to be celebrated after the long summer vacation.

Although most children have returned to school, Satoru Kanematsu's former teacher is feeling his age.

Long holidays
grandchildren homecoming
flow and ebb

Old teacher
sitting not swinging
on the swing

Four generations of the Kanematsu family live in Nagoya. Veteran haikuist Kanematsu keeps a keen eye on them all.

Earlier this year he recorded his mother's centenary.

Summer's end saw him sharing the wonder of the night sky with a granddaughter.

White peony
admiring with mom
soon one hundred

Granddaughter
holds my hand tighter
fireworks flash

Yutaka Kitajima went for a hike using his father's cane over the hills in Joetsu, Niigata Prefecture. The poem is written in reflection, the same scene could have occurred a generation ago. Megawati Wiyaya wrote a timeless love poem at the beach in Singapore.

Father's stick
in hand--plodding through
verdant hills

Watching waves
with you by my side
passing time

In today's society, the elderly are often taken care of by children old enough to be senior citizens. Sosuke Kanda caught sight of an elderly woman being taken for a stroll in a park in Saitama by her eldest son. He also visited an aging relative suffering from dementia. Although they spoke about many things, by the end of the visit Kanda felt as though nothing had really been understood.

Autumn skies
he also white-haired
pushing her cart

Leaving his hospital
without saying a word
hot autumn

Takako Nagai laments another summer gone. The family she nurtured in Tokyo will soon be leaving. Arvin Cabrito says farewell to his father in the Philippines. Josh Wikoff felt his spirits soar in the autumn wind.

No reason to stay
last swallow
on its way

Summer's gone
feeling still asking
miss you dad
River wind
the lift of a feather
on my spirit

The 9th annual Haiku International Association contest deadline is Sept. 19.

Results will announced on Nov. 19 at a ceremony to take place in the Tokyo Kaikan.

The Seinan Jo Gakuin University Haiku and Poems for Mother Earth contest deadline is Sept. 26. Nine winning entries will be announced on Oct. 14 during a workshop given at the International Village Center in Kita-Kyushu. Contest details are available at haiku-hia.com/cont_en.html and seinan-jo.com/haiku respectively. Winning haiku from these contests will be featured in future issues of the Asahi Haikuist Network.

Want to try composing haiku ?

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The next issues of the Asahi Haikuist Network appear Sept. 29. Mail haiku to David McMurray at the International Herald Tribune/Asahi Shimbun, 5-3-2 Tsukiji, Chuo-ku, Tokyo 104-8011, fax 03-5541-8539, or e-mail <is@asahi.com>.