HAIKU DIALOGUE – the way of you & Intro to Opposites Attract

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1. Congratulations to all of the poets, and thanks to Craig and K.J. for continuing the column in new ways.

2. What a wonderful collection of poems reflecting so many different styles! I loved them all, but a few really stood out for me.
   .
   broken cloud
   a white butterfly
   bends the fuchsia
   —Marilyn Ward, Scunthorpe Lincolnshire, UK
   .
   Beautiful, delicate image!
   .
   housebound thirty years
   I watch baby ducks grow
   and fly free
   —Pris Campbell
   .
   Truly a poignant poem of longing to be free.
   .
   doing me
   I get all
   shy
   —nancy liddle
   .
   Wonderfully reductive poem. The very structure echoes the way shy people pull into themselves.
   .
   midday sun –
   chasing the shade
   from shadow to shadow
   —Nick T, UK
   .
   Had to laugh at this one because it is exactly how I walk! Love the flickering sun/shade/shadow effect.perfect!
   .
   driftwood how far is far enough
   —Vandana Parashar
   .
   Perfectly concise image. It says all it needs to say in five words.
   .
   morning light—
   tree tops
   touched by flame
   —Helen Ogden
   .
   Beautiful and startling. This evokes so many possibilities from the beauty of the morning sun to the recent horrific fires in Australia. Wow! A very open poem that leaves it to the reader to finish

   .
   Thanks again Craig for making us consider the process as well as the end product. Writing is a journey of exploration, not a destination.

3. First off–thanks, Craig, for your spot-on comments on all the featured poems, and for your fantastic work on this blog. There is truly an art to creating prompts, and yours have been unfailingly challenging and inspiring. Each was truly a learning experience (equal emphasis on both words in this term) that will stay with me for a long time.
   **
   I hope I have a chance to comment on more of the poems here, but meanwhile, the one that most affected me was:
   *
   dog’s wet kiss—
   her sigh
   as deep as mine

   Madhuri Pillai
   *
   so true. When i see the “discoveries” science is making about animals’ emotions, it just kills me: hasn’t it always been obvious that animals are as sensitive as we are–if not more?! Thanks, Madjuri, for writing this.
   *
   My best to all–stay well!

   1. sorry for the typo Madhuri–now that is truly “me”

4. Thank you Craig for choosing such interesting subjects and providing such insightful commentary. I have been truly inspired by the contributions from all the poets.

5. THE INTRIGUINGNESS OF INNER LINES OF HAIKU
   .
   .
   Sometimes just one line before we see the other wonderful lines, and the dynamic of the whole haiku is a delight to savor, and pause before we dive into the whole magic of the poem! 🙂
   .
   .
   For example

   broken cloud

   Marilyn Ward, Scunthorpe Lincolnshire, UK

   .
   arriving somewhere

   Ludo Yamamoto

   .

   first love…

   Rosa Maria Di Salvatore

   .

   barefoot on the stone

   Albert Schepers, Windsor, Ontario

   .
   different mirage

   Teiichi Suzuki, Japan

   .

   the poems I never

   Dan Campbell

   .

   I caress the skin

   Eva Limbach, Germany

   .
   moonless puddle

   Vishnu Kapoor

   .

   on one string

   Stoianka Boianova

   .
   the moth seeks light

   vincenzo adamo

   .

   folds and fissures

   Janice Doppler

   .

   windblown roses

   Alan Summers, England

   .
   in the garden listening

   Rehn Kovacic

   .

   housebound thirty years

   Pris Campbell

   .

   this urge to mother

   Deborah P Kolodji, Temple City, California

   .

   shy

   nancy liddle

   .

   syllables in bed
   John Green

   .

   for the camera
   Christine L. Villa, USA

   .

   mountain of steps

   Marie Therese

   .

   chasing the shade

   Nick T, UK

   .

   the children think

   Bill Kenney

   .

   how far is far enough
   Vandana Parashar

   .

   touched by flame

   Helen Ogden

   .

   ‘classic radio’
   Helga Stania

   .
   through my mind

   Peggy Hale Bilbro, Huntsville, Alabama

   .

   flittering
   Valentina Ranaldi-Adams, Fairlawn, Ohio USA

   .
   clinging to everything

   Bryan Rickert

   .
   my child doodles a bear
   Pat Davis NH

   .
   here and gone
   Agus Maulana Sunjaya, Tangerang, Indonesia

   .

   as deep as mine
   Madhuri Pillai

   .
   in half-light
   Elisa Allo

   .
   my footsteps pausing
   Janice Munro

   .

   not remembering
   Angiola Inglese

   .
   through the frame
   Greer Woodward, Waimea, HI

   .
   folding a thousand
   cezar-florin ciobica
   .
   the lawnmower makes
   Milan Rajkumar, Imphal, India
   .
   flea market postcards
   Sari Grandstaff, Saugerties, NY
   .
   the tree conjures up
   Robert Kingston
   .
   the last blackbird’s flight
   simonj UK
   .
   made of small paths
   Laurie Greer
   .
   .
   .
   And how those inner lines of different poems leap and link amongst themselves, amongst those other poems!
   .
   Alan

   1. Wow! I love this. Something renku-ish about it. A found renku, perhaps.

      1. Well I guess there was that famous one word renku, so it’s entirely possible. It certainly reveals the link and shift technique that is in both renga, renku, haiku itself borrowing from hokku and its companion verses, and tanka, and many other classical Japanese poetic forms. 🙂

   2. Hi Alan, I am glad you like the first line of my haiku.

      1. Dear Valentina,
         .
         I loved the whole haiku too! 🙂
         .
         I was just picking out a single line from every haiku and found an intriguing dynamic, almost renku like linking and shifting. 🙂
         .
         .
         flittering
         the day away . . .
         this butterfly
         .
         Valentina Ranaldi-Adams
         Fairlawn, Ohio USA
         .
         .
         It’s a beautiful haiku, and the pandemic has assured that we will see more of some kinds of butterfly. I had one whizz past so fast, it took my breath away! 🙂
         .
         Alan

         1. Alan, I am glad that you loved my haiku. I hope it brought a smile to you.

   3. Thanks Alan, what a cool way to create a new poem!

      1. Thank you!
         .
         At first it was going to be one of my popular features at just picking out a single line from each haiku. But then I saw that in many instances each single line from different haiku was making up a renku like or even free verse poem! 🙂
         .
         .
         Your whole haiku, almost tanka like, is amazing by the way!!!
         .
         .
         waving goodbye –
         the poems I never
         shared with her
         .
         Dan Campbell
         .
         .

      2. Ditto what Dan said. You have done that several times in the past, Alan, and the results are stunning, more than each itself, as if the words enhance each other. Kind of like two medications work synergistically (a better effect than expected).

         1. Thanks!
            .
            Yes, the very first time I did it, many months ago, it was simply showcasing a single line, if it was a tercet, and a phrase if it was a monoku.
            .
            The successive times it was if a spell was being cast highlighting these lines, which morphed into the most amazing larger poem! 🙂

   4. Wonderful way to read this collection! As I read your lines, I also saw it as a poem in its own right! Thank you for making us see it with new eyes.

      1. Hi Peggy! 🙂
         .
         Yes, me too, I started seeing a poem. In renku there is both the overall poem, but also verses 1 & 2 make a couplet standalone poem, as do verses 2 with 3, and then 3 and 4 and so on.
         .
         I started to see this could make one larger poem too, as well as want to highlight the power of the single poetic line in haiku. 🙂
         .
         Alan

   5. Thank you, Alan and Craig !!

      1. Thanks!

   6. Indeed a great play on single lines Alan.
      I particularly liked this pair.

      the lawnmower makes
      Milan Rajkumar, Imphal, India
      .
      flea market postcards
      Sari Grandstaff, Saugerties, NY

      Thank you for including a line from mine.

      1. No worries! 🙂

   7. Can you explain what you mean by “inner lines?”

      1. Hi Janice,
         .
         You asked:
         Can you explain what you mean by “inner lines?”
         .
         .
         Regarding:
         .
         THE INTRIGUINGNESS OF INNER LINES OF HAIKU
         And how those inner lines of different poems leap and link amongst themselves, amongst those other poems!
         .
         .
         I’ve done this approach a few times in the past for HAIKU DIALOGUE and something has always struck me about the single lines ‘WITHIN’ the haiku. And almost always there is something dynamic about any particular selected single line from different poems making up an extraordinarily powerful ‘overall poem’ that could be a larger free verse poem, or a renku poem, with its multiple variations of inner couplets.
         .
         This was shown to me by Marshall Hryciuk who “popped” over from Canada to do an Easter Renga at my local train station! 🙂 Yes, it was very exciting!!! 🙂
         .
         .
         The Bath Spa Railway Station Renku
         Hosted by With Words (Alan Summers & Karen Hoy), with Marshall Hryciuk & Karen Sohne, Canada, and friends.
         https://area17.blogspot.com/2009/04/bath-spa-train-station-renga-party.html
         .
         When we performed the finished renga at night, in the Raven public house in the City of Bath, we didn’t just read verse after verse. Each of us would read two verses, but not only that, each new person would read the last verse performed as well as one new verse.
         .
         i.e.
         .
         One of us would read these two verses together:
         .
         scribing lines
         across the fields
         Easter journey
         .
         hopping on one foot
         grandchild counts ducklings
         .
         .
         And the next person would step forward and read:
         .
         .
         hopping on one foot
         grandchild counts ducklings
         .
         the empty home
         a kettle whistles
         as a train rumbles past
         .
         .
         It meant we had multiple couplets (five line poems) within the 36 verse overall renga! 🙂
         .
         .
         Each line of a renga can be more than one verse linking and shifting to the next one, so if my maths is correct, then that particular single renga poem of 36 verses also created 35 separate five line poems! 🙂
         .
         .
         NOW IF WE LOOK AT SINGLE STANDALONE HAIKU NOW:
         .
         Often I might select the middle or ‘last’ line for this HAIKU DIALOGUE practice I do from time to time. But in some haiku the ‘last line’ is also a vehicle to loop back and read the ‘first line’ through to the middle and ‘last line’ again, and sometimes again! 🙂
         .
         That’s one instance where even a last line is also acting as part of a constant cycle of reading the poem.
         .
         For instance
         .
         windblown roses
         another direction
         for the traveller
         .
         Alan Summers
         .
         .
         This could be read, naturally, from lines one through to three, of course, and then also:
         .
         .
         windblown roses
         another direction
         .
         for the traveller
         .
         another direction
         windblown roses
         .
         for the traveller
         .
         .
         And “ad infinitum”, so that even an opening line or ‘closing’ line might not be in the fixed outer line positions as we see ‘on the page’
         .
         .

         Another example:
         .
         .
         porch side mountains
         the wind-pushed snow
         all around us
         .
         Alan Summers
         Asahi Shimbun (December 2019, Japan)
         .
         .
         I could loop back or loop around and make a second reading variation of:
         .
         .
         all around us
         porch side mountains
         the wind-pushed snow
         .
         or
         .
         all around us
         the wind-pushed snow
         porch side mountains
         .
         .
         As well as:
         .
         .
         porch side mountains
         the wind-pushed snow
         .
         all around us
         .
         the wind-pushed snow
         porch side mountains
         .
         .
         and other variations.
         .
         .
         And of course there is the “innerness” or “inneringiness” [sic] of any of the ‘three lines’ that resonate and vibrate just on their own. If each line is forensically placed, it can sing on its own, and also sing with its other two lines of that particular haiku. And it can also sing with other haiku, as they do at HAIKU DIALOGUE.
         .
         The same can happen if an anthology is well put together. The same can happen if we are careful how we put our own collection of haiku together.
         .
         This has been intriguing because I started this week’s commentary with no idea where it would take me! Thank you for adding to this. I am sure there are more questions, and I’ll do my best to discover the answers! 🙂
         .
         warm regards,
         Alan

         1. thanks, as always, Alan, for your help, & thoughtful comments!
            *
            I had an experience recently with a ‘cento’ – a poem made up from lines of others’ poems… in this case, a poet created a cento from the chat from a zoom meeting with more than a dozen poets reading & discussing their longer poems… truly amazing!
            *
            thanks for the great discussion, kj

            1. Very cool!
               .
               I also discovered when I did my two 1000 renga verse projects (senku renga) that using my different types of jobs made people feel secure enough and safe, and relaxed, that they’d start speaking in poetry. Not rhyming, but the rhythm. Whenever I asked them to write it down it got all stilted.
               .
               So I always had pen and paper immediately to hand and wrote the verses down exactly as they were said, no editing. I could do this with Eastern Bloc gangsters, and people off the street, but poets were hard to pin down for some reason. Go figure!
               🙂
               .
               .
               Our Hull (North England) verse had 3,300 verses all lined along library book shelves, and people changed holiday plans to spend it in Hull, and the central library instead! 🙂
               .
               .
               You said:
               .
               “in this case, a poet created a cento from the chat from a zoom meeting with more than a dozen poets reading & discussing their longer poems”
               .
               .
               So they became relaxed, and it’s like those fly on the wall documentaries, where the camera is forgotten, as well as the audience, and the person taking notes.
               .
               .
               I hope we can see this new poem when it’s published. Will you let us know?
               .
               What kind of effect, and facial expressions, happened? I bet they were awed into silence at first and then everyone wanted to speak and applaud!

6. .
   .
   Not sure, but I might have had the privilege of hearing this on a private zoom event?
   .
   .
   first light
   the tree conjures up
   a crow
   .
   Robert Kingston
   .
   .
   It’s so accurate! 🙂 You have definitely caught the “crow”ness of the creature, and that special part of the day!
   .
   Alan

   1. Thank you Alan
      Indeed we have spoken on this one previously.
      Actually written a while ago now, but I thought it fitting for the prompt.

      Hope you are both keeping well.
      Best wishes
      Rob

      1. Glad it found a home.
         .
         We are still self-isolating, and quite happy ordering things online, which garners better savings etc…
         .
         We have family members suffering hardships, re health issues, which makes us feel absolutely helpless though.
         .
         Alan

7. Craig – thank you for all the time you put into this treat-for-all during the past several weeks.
   .
   I this week’s verses
   .
   not counting
   syllables
   making a haiku
   John Green
   .
   Made me laugh since I am often caught doing the same thing as, I suspect, many of us have.
   .
   morning light —
   tree tops
   touched by flame
   Helen Ogden
   .
   The image ‘tree tops touched by fire’ grabs me in a way I cannot put into words. I keep reading the haiku over and over.
   .
   So many wonderful haiku each week.

8. Thank you Craig for this process-oriented series of prompts. For me it was exceptional. I found many of them inspiring and enjoyed the unique responses that came from contributors. And of course, I appreciated having my haiku included 🙂 All the best.

9. Yes, this is so ME. haha. Thank, Kath Abela! <3

10. Congratulations to all dear poetry
    ❤️❤️

11. Thank you Craig for your commentary on my haiku and the others. And congratulations to all these wonderful poets! Such a treat. I especially loved
    my summer –
    pages of a book
    in half-light

    Elisa Allo
    It seems to speak to this pandemic summer especially but also as a signature style haiku speaks volumes about the poet. Also this very thoughtful haiku:
    driftwood how far is far enough

    Vandana Parashar
    This style is very interesting to me. Kind of stream of consciousness yet also very connected to a real and thoughtful association. Vandana expresses that true sense of wonder which haiku captures. I really love it and I could see it on a postcard actually.
    Also this one that you commented on:
    early am
    a long walk
    made of small paths

    Laurie Greer
    When I walk on my local rail trail there are markers every half mile and it does have that feeling of cobbling together a walk in segments deciding how far to go any particular morning.
    Thank you Craig for your guest editing these past couple of months. You have expanded and challenged my haiku horizons. I look forward to KJMunro’s Opposites Attract haiku in these next weeks.

    1. You’re welcome, Sari. I’m glad the experience was beneficial.

12. thank you for including mine – much appreciated 🙂

13. Thank you Craig, Kathy and Lori for including mine.
    As always it is always great to appear alongside such nice poems.
    Congratulations all!

14. Beautiful sprawling mountains of Christine Villa and mothering by Deborah P Kolodji these are both so… as I know you …You!

    Very special thoughtful inspiring prompts Craig..challenging and compelling. You have engaged us in your intent.

15. Thankyou Craig.
    It helps when you’ve experienced birds and bats many times in evening twilight.
    .
    My most dominant style is vignette with comparison(s) (jux). And although in a traditional Japanese aesthetic, I am always trying to “make it new”.

16. Thank you Craig and to all of the participants, I sure did enjoy reading this week’s selections.

17. Thank you so much ! I am elated ! Thank you Craig , kjmunro and Lori . God bless !

18. Thanks for selecting mine. I especially liked

    windblown roses
    another direction
    for the traveller

    Alan Summers, England

    1. Thanks Pris!
       .
       We are not sure which kind of rose as they were planted by the previous roses.
       .
       .
       windblown roses
       another direction
       for the traveller
       .
       Alan Summers, England
       .
       .
       We plant new roses with a literary connection, but it was so dramatic I knew that I had to write about these roses! 🙂
       .
       .
       housebound thirty years
       I watch baby ducks grow
       and fly free
       .
       Pris Campbell
       .
       .
       Wonderful! Great opening line! Fine haiku.
       .
       .
       I’m reminded of looking after murray maggies aka mudpie larks, that were orphaned. They would sit on my shoulders as I writing poems, on a Queenslander verandah. I also had a Willy Wagtail as a bodyguard to keep the Kookaburras at arms length! 🙂
       .
       .
       almost lost
       in the shimmer of water
       several ducklings
       .
       Alan Summers
       Article: “English/Japanese Haiku” by Nobuyuki Yuasa, Baiko Women’s College, October 1996, Japan
       .
       .
       Romanised (romaji) version by Nobuyuki Yuasa:
       .
       mizu haete hikari ni kasumu kogamo kana
       .
       .
       For any Queenslanders (people not houses) it was composed at Warrill View in Queensland. 🙂
       .
       .
       I love how you have used ducklings to track your life path, and existence, there can be no more beautiful thing than see fledglings grow up and fly free.
       .
       warm regards,
       Alan

19. Dear Cezar-florin ciobica,
    Greetings, in times of lockdown impacting globally, a beautiful image in the following .
    S.Radhamani

    lockdown
    folding a thousand
    origami cranes

    cezar-florin ciobica

20. I’m very happy to be in this week’s selections – thanks to Craig, Lori, and kj.

    The following poems struck me on a personal level – bringing back memories:
    “classic radio” by Helga Stania reminded me of the many hours I spent listening to the radio in the days of fountain pens. Yes, I had a fountain pen, and an ink blotter.

    “hush” by Rehn Kovacic made me wish I had the kind of hearing ability to listen to a butterfly. I’ve watched butterflies many, many times, but never thought of hearing one. So, thanks for that thought.

    “sprawling mountains” by Christine L. Villa reminded me of a time when I had my picture taken in a similar pose while visiting the Shenandoah Mountains on one of my many trips with my husband.

    On “being true to myself” when writing – I try to look at haiku moments with the eyes of a child. Their sense of wonder and unfiltered comments have always captivated me. So, for this week’s theme, I wanted to show that in the poem I submitted.

    1. Thank you, Pat, for mentioning my poem. I’m glad that you liked it.

    2. Thanks, Pat, for liking my poem. Isn’t it fun to pose with our outstretched arm, so open to the abundance of the universe 🙂

21. Dear esteemed poet,
    Greetings. Here, end of summer, wind blowing from afar, with the aroma of roses, for my corner of creative table, a new direction,inspiring my mood.

    S.Radhamani

    windblown roses
    another direction
    for the traveller

    Alan Summers, England

    1. Dear Radhamani sarma,
       .
       .
       I am delighted that my poem connected with you! 🙂
       .
       .
       windblown roses
       another direction
       for the traveller
       .
       Alan Summers, England

22. Thankyou very much Craig for selecting my haiku, I’m thrilled to be here with amazing haijin
    Congratulations everyone

    1. Ah, Lincolnshire!!!!!!!!!
       .
       .

       broken cloud
       a white butterfly
       bends the fuchsia
       .
       Marilyn Ward
       Scunthorpe Lincolnshire, UK
       .
       .
       What a terrific haiku!!! Great opening line!
       .
       Alan

23. lockdown
    folding a thousand
    origami cranes
    .
    cezar-florin ciobica
    .
    The legend is that anyone who folds a thousand cranes will be granted one wish. The universal wish in these difficult times is for the virus to end. Thank-you for putting into words what is on everyone’s mind.

24. Thank-you Craig for selecting mine. Thank-you also to all the others who have a part in publishing this column every week. Congrats to all the poets.

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