This Post Has 33 Comments

1. Hi ….Good Morning in 2020! – already….wed. Morning in Sunny So.

   🌸👍😎👌🙏😉 Ca

   I heard our Great Horned Owls in a brief duet…

   I appreciate kjmunro, Kabela plus Charles’ tips that I need to submit through the contact form my submission which probably was late several times…
   In Ca we r 3 hrs behind so before 9 more like 7 ish …to my bed time
   since I get called for work at 5:30am…

   More new comer
   detailed step by step explanation as to how to navigate this haiku dialogue site.

   One tip fr moi- to turn my cell horizontal so I can easier understand the 3 line format vs horizontal.
   Then back to navigate my comment to

   Leave a Reply. Comment. 1-1-2020 7:00 am Ca time Wed.

   Via Janis🌸

   It would also help to have more reference pts or buoy markers for the haiku and comments by only? Published recently ? Here poets…

   I see K’s

   solstice life celebration
   mom has outlived
   all her friends

   Kath Abela Wilson
   Santa Barbara, California

   And I identify w that

   Years young
   since about 4 of my friends passed this year at 97 and I am floating at 70+..|
   No more counting -esp since I stayed at 65 for several years…

   I love 💕 k’s

   First line “Solstice life celebration ”

   Hmmm for my life I’d like a musical, laughter flow yoga

   Esp
   for God’s protection in early Dec 2019 with my tire blowout that seemed to cause a total car loss again .

   Yeah I survived 👍.

   solstice life celebration

   “mom has outlived
   all her friends”

   is a fortunate fact of K’s mom is thanks to the wise and loving support of her family”

   Each family hopefully has a story like Charles Harmon too w his mother’s last breath

   “I love you.”

   I was grateful to have been w my mom when she passed in our home about 17 years ago.

   Kath Abela Wilson
   Santa Barbara, California

   Reply

2. storm warning—
   she says she’ll do it for me
   be my bottle

   Reply

   1. Andrew,
      *
      Did you mean to post this as a possible next verse for the renku? If so, you have to post it through the comments blank at the bottom of THIS page:
      *
      https://www.thehaikufoundation.org/2019/12/26/the-renku-sessions-tawny-jacket-week-7/#comment-112448
      *
      It’s a really good link, so I hope you’ll get to post it before Midnight EST, Tuesday (tomorrow)!!
      *
      ~Autumn

      Reply

3. new year’s eve
   he promises to be faithful
   again

   Reply

4. Many thanks, Lori, for including my senryu amongst so many beautiful offerings. I deeply appreciate your thoughtful comments connecting my magic markers to magic moments. Thank you for intuiting the feelings under the words. . .
   •
   Because of my own losses (particularly those of my parents 10 and 19 years ago now) the following poignant senryu lodged like lumps in my throat. Together, they take us through the grieving journey from the presence of literal loss through the annual remembrances and finally to the forgetting of acceptance.
   •
   I admire where Charles chose to place “I love you,” as he leaves us with the greatest gift a mother can give. This loss feels ragged and raw, and I suspect, recent. Because I was holding her hand when my own mother took her last breath, I know the depth and power of this moment personally. If it is as I suspect, Charles, and you’ve just lost your mom, I hope you realize the gift you gave her in your presence at the crossroads.
   •
   I love Angela’s use of the word “free,” which lends so much power and meaning to her poem. It suggests not only the empty chair, but also the possibility of an afterlife free of life’s burdens and grief. It also conveys the respect of a family who leaves space open at the table (and in their hearts) as a way of continuing the relationship with their loved one.
   •
   Dee’s forgetfulness made me gasp, even as the familiarity of its sentiment resonated with me. It is with a simultaneous sadness and relief that we move through the throes of loss to the place where we cease marking every occasion as a stopping point to reflect on the death. The realization that once we’ve passed this threshold, our loved ones return to us anew is one of grief’s greatest gifts.

   •
   just before Christmas
   with her last breath
   Mom said, “I love you”
   •
   Charles Harmon
   Los Angeles, California, USA
   •
   Christmas together
   between memories and nostalgia-
   your free place
   •
   Natale insieme
   tra ricordi e nostalgia-
   il tuo posto libero*
   •
   dedicated to my mother who died in the last decade
   •
   Angela Giordano
   Italy
   •
   winter sun
   the year we forgot
   to light your candle
   •
   Dee Wallace

   •
   I also wanted to acknowledge the welcome inclusion of some humor in this holiday set. Rehn’s placement of a fake mouse was delightfully surprising. Even in its humor, it serves to remind us that all gifts and visitors are welcome in that metaphorical stable.
   •
   Laurie is spot in in her assessment of the pre-holiday frenzy: exhausting. It is an astute observation of yet another of the negative consequences of commercial capitalism. It brings to mind the fact that our modern day notion of Santa was an invention of Macy’s Department Store—what better way to encourage people to spend more money on materialism than a jolly old elf packing a sleigh full of loot accompanied by the Rockets in matching elf costumes.
   •
   Rich Shilling’s tangled Christmas lights remind us of all the ways we can become knotted up. It’s always amazing how this seems to happen despite all our best efforts to wrap the cords carefully. This is a gentle reminder of the constant maintenance relationships require and the way we must proceed strand by strand, bulb by bulb, to sort out our disagreements. What a redeeming idea in these polarized times of ours.
   •
   fake mouse
   cat adds another visitor
   to the nativity crèche
   •
   Rehn Kovacik
   •
   retail
   wrapping up the holidays
   in exhaustion
   •
   Laurie Greer
   •
   christmas lights we untangle our differences
   •
   Rich Schilling
   Webster Groves, MO
   •

   Finally, I enjoyed discovering the alternative cultural traditions wrapped up in these offerings:

   dousing the Yule log with wine (Tomislav Maretić)
   •
   the Slavic Father Frost (Natalia Kuznetsova)
   •
   solstice dumplings (Christina Chin)
   •
   potato latkes (Sari Granstaff, Susan Rogers)
   •
   reindeer sausage (Mark Gilbert)
   •
   A wonderful and timely collection, Lori—thank you for your conscientious curation!
   •
   ~Autumn

   Reply

   1. Thank you so much for highlighting my poem.

      Reply

5. Thanks for including my poem in the mix. I enjoyed every one, and especially these four:

   the Golden Years… / her Christmas card list / dwindles Valentina Ranaldi-Adams

   winter sun / the year we forgot / to light your candle Dee Wallace

   that Christmas / there were stars / the year we were poor Peggy Hale-Bilbro

   Christmas dinner for two / candles filling / the empty places Greer Underwood

   Reply

   1. Thank-you for choosing mine.

      Reply

6. Thank you Lori and Lori Z. for taking the time to put this together Christmas week. A lovely read.
   .
   christmas lights we untangle our differences
   .
   Rich Schilling
   .
   Loved the monoku.
   *
   that Christmas
   there were stars
   the year we were poor
   .
   Peggy Hale Bilbro
   .
   Different format, each line starting with a th word, and using were twice, but it grew on me. Powerful contrast in stars and poor.
   *
   a serpentine road
   takes me back home…
   landslide warning
   .
   Hifsa Ashraf
   .
   The twists and turns of returning home, with a bit of mystery.
   *
   winter wonderland
   the raucous aroma
   of reindeer sausage
   .
   Mark Gilbert
   .
   The surprise ending made me laugh after a couple of busy days.
   *

   Reply

   1. Thanks for your comment.

      Reply

   2. Glad you liked mine!

      Reply

7. Thanks to Lori and Lori and all who submitted this week.
   Another heartfelt and beautiful selection; I’m proud to be a part of this.
   A few that especially struck me–all involving loss, for some reason. In this season of abundance, we feel most keenly what’s gone.
   My best to everyone–
   *

   oxygen hiss
   my father talks to ghosts
   on Christmas day

   Pris Campbell

   *
   this reminds me of my grandfather–on his last night he told the nurse he had to go because his wife was waiting–she’d died years before and, surely, she’d been patient long enough.
   *
   winter sun
   the year we forgot
   to light your candle

   Dee Wallace

   *
   a beautiful visual image and so full of emotion
   *
   christmas morning
   still unwrapping
   your absence

   m. shane pruett
   Oregon, USA

   *
   it takes a long long time to get used to the loss…really, they always remain new and fresh
   *
   Christmas dinner for two
   candles filling
   the empty places

   Greer Woodward

   *
   I love the unexpected turn. What starts as a romantic scene turns into one of memorial–yet still, somehow, retains the romance, magnified by poignancy.
   *

   Reply

   1. Hi Laurie,

      Thanks, Laurie, for commenting on my haiku. I find it very helpful to know what others see in my work.

      I read this suite of haiku early Christmas morning and it put me in a good mood for the festivities that followed.

      Aloha,
      Greer

      Reply

8. Thanks Valentina, and to you and Ron, most excellent haiku. With one of my son’s living so far away for far too long, yours particularly resonated, Ron.

   Reply

9. Thank you for including mine in this great haiku selection, Lori. Such joy to read the variety of moments.

   Reply

10. Thank you for including my haiku Lori! A rich collection of memories here.

    Reply

11. Thank you for including my haiku! Bonus Christmas present!

    Reply

12. A very nice selection, thanks for publishing my haiku too

    Reply

13. I loved this week’s selection, so many memories and emotions. Here are a few beautiful verses which caught my eye:-
    .
    oxygen hiss
    my father talks to ghosts
    on Christmas day
    Chilling from Pris Campbell.
    .
    your last haiku of candle light
    frozen smile in the casket
    Nuky Kristijono – lovely and I particularly love the first line
    .
    dough kneading
    the giggles over winter
    solstice dumplings
    Christina Chin. Light and simple, dense and complex
    .
    missing on Christmas
    dad’s favourite muffler wrapped
    around the snowman
    Vandana Parashar. Still poignant, even though I don’t use ‘muffler’ that way.
    .
    Hanukkah latkes
    my mother’s eyes tearing up
    chopping the onions
    Sari Grandstaff. Beautifully done. Now why all that fuss about 5-7-5???
    .
    christmas baubles –
    our laughter tinkling
    in the firelight
    Isabel Caves. A gorgeous memory, and a delight to speak.
    .
    Thank you Loris.

    Reply

    1. Thanks Mark for the appreciation.
       Thank you, Lori for including mine.
       A wonderful selection as usual!

       Reply

    2. Thank you Mark for your appreciative comments on my haiku! Thank you Lori for putting together this holiday haiku treat. My birthday is Christmas Day so very special time for me.

       Reply

14. Thank you for this wonderful Christmas gift of beautiful haiku . The list you published was such a pleasure to read. Happy holidays.

    Reply

15. Thanks Lori for publishing one of my haiku. Your comment was apropos as that first Christmas as a blended family was difficult enough for everyone, but we created a new tradition that continues to this day, and as the family has grown, so does the tradition.

    All the traditions of the various faiths are seen here, and the emotional aspects as well. A rich assortment of haiku, gifts of words that transcend. Thanks to everyone for your gift of haiku to cherish throughout the season. The joyful, the poignant, the humorous, the solemn and sad.

    Happy holiday to all however you celebrate (or Don’t).

    Reply

    1. Thank you for your words, I loved your verse with its dense and complex structure

       Reply

       1. Thanks, Mark, for your kind comment.

          There are so many holiday memories here, and I am enjoying all kitchen

          Reply

          1. KITCHEN? where did that come from? it was supposed to say, “all of them.”

             I hate typos, particularly mine.

             Reply

             1. It was the spellchecker wot done it.

16. A great selection, Lori, and thanks to the poets who made this a revealing read, some very personal and brave considering the time of year. Thank you for including my effort.
    .
    We try hard to make Christmas and other such occasions one of joy, becoming less easy as children leave the nest and families move away.

    Ronald K. Craig expressed this — something we may have all experienced:

    family scattered
    singing holiday wishes
    over the phone

    I remember the emptiness of that echo, too.

    .
    Michele L. Harvey’s poem made me smile:

    surprise Santa
    the same aftershave
    as my father

    Oh, the innocence of childhood!

    .
    A different message from Deborah P. Kolodji:

    the Christmas card chain
    Mom hung over curtains
    e-cards in my inbox
    .
    In a way it’s good we’re beginning to cut down on paper/card products at this time, but somehow, like round robins one receives – although fewer as time goes by – the personal touch begins to evaporate.

    I knew some who, in a bid to outnumber others, used to hang all their cards up on show from many years gone by.
    “It’s the thought that counts…”
    .
    The poem which intrigued me the most was Hifsa Ashraf’s:
    .
    a serpentine road
    takes me back home . . .
    landslide warning
    .
    Could this be mountainous north Pakistan, a spectacularly beautiful region of that nation, but where landslides and rockfall are common, especially after heavy rain? If so, my heartbeats race with yours. Scary stuff.

    Reply

17. An absolute wealth of nostalgia and wonderful memories. Well done to all poets.
    .
    lots of gifts for uncle…
    that year he could
    not give
    .
    Pat Davis
    I’m feeling ‘the milk of human kindness’ overflowing with this verse. Lovely work.
    .
    Christmas baubles—
    our laughter tinkling
    in the fire light
    .
    Isabel Caves
    A beautiful sensory verse, gorgeous Isabel.
    .
    surprise santa
    the same aftershave
    as my father
    .
    Michele L. Harvey
    A wonderful childhood memory, made me smile, Michele.
    .
    holiday season…
    the missing cards
    of friends long gone
    .
    Madhuri Pillai
    I’m sure many of us can relate to this touching verse, Madhuri.
    ,
    Thank you, Lori and everyone who has taken time-out at this busy time to bring us this delightful session of haiku.
    Merry Christmas to all 🙂

    Reply

    1. Thank you Carol for your thoughts on my poem, our memories keep those who have left us, alive.

       Reply

18. Thank-you Lori for publishing my haiku. Congratulations to my fellow Ohioans for having theirs published. Congratulations to all the other poets. May you all experience many haiku moments during the holidays.

    Reply

    1. Thank you, Valentina!

       Reply

    2. Thanks Valentina, and to you and Ron, most excellent haiku. With one of my son’s living so far away for far too long, yours particularly resonated, Ron.

       Reply