This Post Has 59 Comments

1. Thank you Alan sir, Private Kumar sir and Margaret madam and all poets. I am learning a lot from your comments and experiences. Thanks everyone

   1. Thank you Alan sir, Pravat Kumar sir, and Margaret ma’am and all poets. I am learning a lot from your comments and experiences. Thanks a lot

      I sincerely apologize for the typo error in my last comment .

      1. Thank you for your kind words! 🙂

2. in sunrise
   I see the colour
   of hope

3. Thank you for taking my haik, Lori! Honored to be included in this great collection

4. So many moving experiences here, representing different lives. I enjoyed reading each one.
   *
   an uphill battle
   I meet myself
   halfway
   .
   Karen Harvey
   .
   I immediately related to this as I survived several losses this decade, learning along the way. The single word in the last line is effective.
   *
   pink slip…
   I know I’m not
   a cherry blossom
   .
   Srinivasa Rao Sambangi
   .
   A fresh take on the haiku cherry blossoms. Hauntingly sad as a pink slip often represents a job loss.
   *
   my handbag
   full of everything
   raising a child
   .
   Nadejda Kostadinova
   .
   Initially reminded me of those days where I wouldn’t go out without food etc for my sons. On second read an overlap in “full of everything” stood out to me.
   *
   another ten years
   I’m not sure I can survive
   more acceleration
   .
   John Hawkhead
   .
   I relate!

   1. Thank you Debbie. Rewriting ourselves

5. Hi Lori.
   I just sent my haiku (Friday 13th 11:39) for “the next ten years”. Just wanted to know if you got them. Used Mozilla on my computer and didn’t get the usual message after I hit submit. Thanks!

   1. sorry for the delay, Rich – your submission was received, kj

      1. No problem. Thank you

6. winter stars
   sparkling in your eyes
   retirement day
   ======

   Tanpopo Anis
   Indonesia

   1. Wondering if this was intended for the current renku page?

7. Thanks so much to Lori for highlighting the personal haiku of mine and for her perceptive comments. It’s rare to be nudged toward the autobiographical in the world of haiku. I especially appreciated the haiku which were like mini-stories, such as Alan Summers’, Natalia Kuznetsova’s, Pat Davis’ and Kath Abela Wilson’s.

   1. Thanks, Mark!

8. .
   .
   an uphill struggle
   I meet myself
   halfway
   .
   Karen Harvey
   Wales
   .
   .
   Another moving poem. This poem is open enough that the reader does not need to know about Karen’s personal health issues, and that she is also a Carer too.
   .
   Some of us are so tough on ourselves, that those of us who are, should meet ourselves
   halfway, and give ourselves some slack! 🙂
   .
   A very moving poem.

   1. Thank you Alan. Yes indeed. Our stories are mutilayered, unique yet universal… all in a just one breath.

9. .
   an english teacher…
   teaching tense
   the past, the present, the future
   .
   .
   *My life changed after I became an English teacher.
   .
   R.Suresh Babu
   India
   .
   .
   A wonderful poem! There are some teachers who teach by rote, and then there are others that change our life for better. I was put into a remedial class around the age of 8 or 9 and it was the Polish teacher who realised I had a gift for writing stories. It turned out, because of her, to be really an advanced class, and one I didn’t want to leave! 🙂
   .
   She certainly, as an english teacher… was teaching tense me the future!
   .
   A very moving poem for all those who might not fit in, or appear to fit, and could be deliberately left behind. Some teachers, like the Marines, never leave anyone behind. 🙂

   1. A beautiful ku by Suresh Babu. It is lively and vivid. It explores early experience while learning languages. I thank Alan for elaborating on the wonderful ku so nicely.

   2. A nice ku and a lovely comment Alan. I enjoyed English but I had a wonderful teacher when I was ten. She made the text come alive when she read aloud. Good teachers make a huge difference, not just in literacy but in confidence too.

10. Thank you for including my haiku. A wonderful and varied compendium of the past decade. I particularly appreciated this one:

    empty nest
    we gather kindling
    for the fire

    Terri French

    1. I loved this one too. It is a great example of multi-layered haiku. There are many aspects of marriage can be re/kindled when the kids leave home!

11. Thanks Lori(s) for another selection of thought-provoking work. I liked may but for some reason this one caught my eye:
    .
    dawn to dust haiku
    .
    Pravat Kumar Padhy
    .
    A ‘meta-haiku’ for the post-modernists amongst us with a dark aftertaste. Cheers, John

    1. Thank you, John, for your comment. Indeed I was writing the monoku as:

       *
       dawn to dusk haiku

       *
       To my surprise, I could discover the typo (‘dust’ in place of ‘dusk’) later! The present one, ‘dawn to dust haiku’ portrays a different meaning. I shall be grateful to you if you kindly make a brief comment on the published one from a reader’s and a critic’s point of view. If it makes any positive literary sense, I shall cherish the option open: typo sometimes as default creation!
       I thank Lori for selecting my monoku. My kudos to all poets for their wonderful haiku.

       John, I have the pleasure of reading your poignant haiku posted in ‘The Living Haiku Anthology’

       Warmly
       Pravat

       1. Pravat – When I read “dawn to dust” my first impression was of the beginning of life to the end.

          1. Thank you, Debbie. It is an interesting twist. I thank Lori and John for their great insight into Meta-haiku (monoku). I read in detail about the concept of ‘Meta-haiku’ and its importance. The following article (Use of Metaphor in Haiku) by Deborah would be very beneficial to all of us.

             https://googleweblight.com/i?u=https://medium.com/house-of-haiku/use-of-metaphor-in-haiku-45d69086fd9e&hl=en-IN

             I shall appreciate it if you kindly unfold the sublime thought of the monoku in brief from the critic’s point of view.

             Your haiku reflects the social synthesis in a creative way. I like it very much.

             jarred by loss
             steadied by the gentle
             reliability of friends

             Debbie Scheving

             1. Thank you for the informative link on metaphors, and commenting on my haiku.

12. sometimes difficult
    to enter into oter’s choice-
    very personal

    better avoid

13. A fascinating collection indeed ! End of a decade when the century is coming out of its teens,A good time for revisiting all that got left behind and a good time for introspection too ! Thanks Lori !

14. Thank you, dear Lori!
    Congratulations for all!!!

15. hours of loneliness
    in the middle of the night
    I still hear her purr

    was in japan and not able to send this one in on time

    1. Hope it was a fun occasion!

       1. Yes!! Thanks for asking.
          I participated in a ceremony of positive purifying light energy in Takayama. Then I visited extremely cool digital museum of light and sound.
          https://www.anaexperienceclass.com/immersive-tokyo-exhibition-photo-opp-instagram-dreams/

16. thank you for including mine – appreciated very much

17. As always, Alan, your verses evoke deep thought, and this one is no exception.
    .
    meeting myself again
    through an unknown sister
    Gormley’s fourth column
    .
    So much to think about with this, could this be you as the artistic person finding yourself through the person you are closest to…?
    I don’t think this is about space or planets, but being the creative people you are.
    I maybe so wrong, but this is what I read.

    1. Thank you Carol!
       .
       .
       Two big things happened at once! I entered a raffle to be one of those chosen for Antony Gormley’s One and Other Fourth Plinth project. My bluff was called! For someone who is normally intensely private, and incredibly introverted, I would be in full public view in London, and thousands and thousands of people around the world would be watching me too! Gulp! 🙂
       .
       Antony Gormley’s Fourth Plinth One and Other Project:
       http://www.antonygormley.com/show/item-view/id/2277
       .
       .
       The second big thing was Karen helped me find my birth mother, who lived in Western Australia, a place I had never been to in my life, despite living in Australia for five years. So I couldn’t meet my mother, but I found I had another sister! My other sister is my adoptive sister, and lived in the same city as me (Bristol). This new sister just happened to be in London (England) and on contract to the NHS!
       .
       I met her the day before going onto the plinth in Trafalgar Square, and Sky Arts got so involved in filming an interview that they forgot I had to go out to start my hour.
       .
       Both big things pushed what I knew about myself and what I could do, and what I could be.
       .
       So yes, it’s partly, or strongly, about putting myself personally and artistically out there in a very public arena, and yes, I did get to meet my birth mother before she died.

       1. A great story, packed into three lines!

       2. That is a moving read, Alan. When you think of the coming together of like minded people who stood on the plinth to portray something remarkable in their life, your presence, no doubt, gave a large and formidable display. Good you have Karen’s warm and gentle hand to help you through these massive life experiences.
          .
          Nice to know you met your birth mum, before she passed on.

18. Lots of time reflected upon here, from youth to old age (older age, maybe?). Poignant and sad, uplifting and positive, well done to all. I imagine the next ten years will be equally fascinating.

19. I enjoyed reading the set of haiku. The word “rust” evoked thoughts and feelings:

    years of rust –
    grandpa’s volkswagen
    sunken in the backyard

    arvinder kaur

    Chandigarh, India

    Rust shows the passage of time. It also hints at impermanence, regret, fading of dreams…

    (Mostly off topic: Too bad plastic does not rust. Besides a plastic object “sunken in the backyard” does nothing compared to “grandpa’s volkswagen.”)

    1. Thanks for your kind comments Dean. Which plastic object are you referring to ?

       1. Not a reference to your haiku.
          .
          I think everything is plastic these days. Lasting forever.

20. another ten years
    I’m not sure I can survive
    more acceleration

    John Hawkhead

    I can certainly understand this! So much truth under the bit of humor here.

    R.Suresh Babu’s – there are so many possible meanings in the word “tense”. The tension of teaching , the tension in our world (past, present and future), if it were in the US, the tension of being prepared for school shootings – and likely others I have not yet noticed. As a former teacher I this one really popped out at me.

    an english teacher…
    teaching tense
    the past, the present, the future

    And Alan Summers’ “meeting myself again” is a gem!

    meeting myself again
    through an unknown sister
    Gormley’s Fourth Plinth

    1. Thank you Margaret! 🙂
       .
       And Alan Summers’ “meeting myself again” is a gem!
       .
       .
       meeting myself again
       through an unknown sister
       Gormley’s Fourth Plinth
       .
       .
       Being on a world famous artist’s project, as well as filmed by Sky Arts, and also the BBC, was a turning point alongside meeting my half-sister for the first time ever.
       .
       .
       I later went to Australia to meet my sister in her home country, and meet my mother for the first time since having to be let go around the age of 11-12 months old. She shared some photos!
       .
       .
       baby photos
f
       rom my birth mother…

       how do I say hello to me

       .
       Alan Summers
       Publication credits: The Heron’s Nest (Vol XIV, No. 2, June, 2012)
       Feature: The Haiku Foundation’s Per Diem: Children ed. Sonam Chhoki (December 2012)
       .
       .
       Many thanks for the mention! 🙂

       1. Correction:
          .
          .
          baby photos
          from my birth mother…

          how do I say hello to me

          .
          Alan Summers
          Publication credits: The Heron’s Nest (Vol XIV, No. 2, June, 2012)
          Feature: The Haiku Foundation’s Per Diem: Children ed. Sonam Chhoki (December 2012)
          .

21. I will comment later on some other excellent pieces but just realized mine has a typo ( my fault!). It should read

    nothing on my calendar
    that morning
    I lost me

    Margaret Walker

    (Not “the morning”)

    1. You know what I say about some typos, that they can be a blessing in disguise? 🙂
       .
       .
       INTENDED:
       .
       nothing on my calendar
       that morning
       I lost me
       .
       Margaret Walker

       .
       .
       TYPO VERSION:
       .
       .
       nothing on my calendar
       the morning
       I lost me
       .
       Margaret Walker
       .
       .
       I much prefer the phrase “the morning I lost me” which has a stronger resonance! 🙂

       1. Thanks for the feedback, Alan! Always much appreciated!

          I originally wrote it with “the morning”, changed it to “that morning” – then sent in the original by mistake.
          Now I can see that it changes and emphasizes not only the break but the sound (when I read it aloud).

          Your story of meeting your sister and birth mother is beautiful. I can only imagine what a momentous event that must have been.

          1. I also thought the typo read smoother but didn’t want to mention it. But since Alan did…

22. We’re all ages it would appear.
    Interesting to see the differing perspectives we each place on important events during the past ten years.
    .
    30 years ago, children were my focus, as was work and pets.
    .
    10 years later, more work, but also the health or otherwise of parents.
    .
    Another 10 years, reflecting on what had, or could have been, plus simplifying life and getting rid of clutter. Yay!!!!
    ..
    Retirement a time to relax? Absolutely not! With the onset of creaking limbs, there’s opportunity to do something about one’s own health, time to rethink one’s priorities, time (and reason) to shout at politicians on the box, time to do all the other things there had been no time to do, and time to read and write haiku.
    .
    Dad used to tell me, “Enjoy life while you’re young”. But while you are reasonably fit, you can’t beat the third age.
    Mulled wine, anybody?
    .
    Welcome back, Alan!
    .
    And thank you Lori for posting mine in this fascinating selection. Every one of them needs careful reflection.

    1. Thanks Ingrid! 🙂

23. meeting myself again
    through an unknown sister
    Gormley’s Fourth Plinth

    ~Alan Summers

    Thank you, Alan! I had never heard of Mr. Gormley or the Fourth Plinth, but thanks to your haiku and the magic of Mr. Google I am instantly transported back to Trafalgar Square. Charming idea that everyone can be an artist for an hour. I think of “Lions” by Dire Straits and how we treat our heroes whose lives are often thrown away for politicians’ and plutocrats’ purposes. Or “Single Handed Sailor” about the Gypsy Moth and the Cutty Sark just down the river, a reminder of why we are still based on Greenwich Meridian Time.

    a stand in
    for your self
    on Gormley’s Plinth

    1. Thanks Charles! 🙂
       .
       A North of England artist but who has caused a stir outside the UK as well, including New York with his statues on roofs! 🙂
       .
       Karen and myself decided on ‘Important Words’ and received them from around the world, staff at One and Other, Sky Arts, and the crane operator who wanted to propose to his fiancé! 🙂
       .
       A young man and his mom stayed on, even though they had planned something else for her birthday, and loved every minute. I didn’t use a PA, so I projected my voice across Trafalgar Square, and I had Karen’s brother in law, his wife, and son there, and her late dad, plus a few haiku poets, and a special treat at an apartment opposite some very famous historic spies! 🙂
       .
       The British Museum archived aspects of the project:
       https://www.webarchive.org.uk/wayback/archive/20100223124345/http://www.oneandother.co.uk/participants/Alan_S
       .
       I was actually born in London (Chelsea) but adopted and taken to Bristol. Oddly both cities were places where I helped check out suspect explosive devices.

24. coldness
    a layer removed
    for to dig her grave
    .
    simonj UK
    .
    How I sent it, and how it should read.

    1. There is a powerful double meaning in these lines for me that is at once visceral and haunting. I can see someone taking off their extra layer of coat or jacket to roll up their sleeves. and remove the top, extra layer of dirt over a grave
       Perhaps there is already someone who has been buried in the grave and a new body will join the old. Although it might be cold. There is both a physical as well as emotional coldness conveyed here.
       I think this haiku works so well because it brings me in close. I feel like I too am taking off an outer layer in the cold.
       well done!

       1. Thanks. I am pleased you experienced the first person. I was that gravedigger (January 2016).
          .
          The “for (so and so) to” ellipisis represents that bit of me missing as well.
          (Any chance of a correction dear editor?)

          1. I might have waited until Friday the 13th to comment on all the typos this week… & I have now corrected this one… cheers, kj

          2. It has a chilling effect on me. Yes I felt that you were the grave digger.

25. beloved rescue…
    the trust in his eyes
    as we farewell him

    Madhuri Pillai

    **
    just have to say–this one hit hard; that look is perfectly, wrenchingly captured.

    1. Thank you Laurie for your comment, I am touched you could relate to this. Years have fled, but the look still haunts me and I still tear up.

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