New Renku Session: Week 2

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1. short night
   almost no time
   to count the stars

   Keith Evetts

   i do not know why
   she left a divination book

2. short night
   almost no time
   to count the stars

   Keith Evetts

   the house is quiet
   child back to hostel

3. short night
   almost no time
   to count the stars

   Keith Evetts

   white puppy
   when i come home will follow me

4. leftover takeout
   reheated in the microwave

5. short night
   barely time
   to count the stars — Keith Evetts

   blue, white and dinosaur
   masks hang by the door
   OR
   blue, white and Spiderman
   masks hanging by the door

6. And a few more …

   short night
   barely time
   to count the stars

   Keith Evetts

   the sabaki stresses
   a number of points

   another tiara
   from the Netflix contract

   all that a dragon
   could wish for a snack

   this year’s Oscars
   are a knockout

   1. Ann Smith: Greetings – Short night – hungry dragon indeed!

      Question for John: We have Oscars here, and earlier Peggy proposed one with Academy Awards. Neither is in the kigo list, so that might tick the ‘non-seasonal’ choice for this verse, but the ceremony takes place in March. This is spring in the northern hemisphere, autumn in the southern. Guidance elsewhere (Carley) is that “There is no set seasonal progression” in the Junicho. I see from his book there is also the “new Junicho” which likewise disregards seasonal progression. Clearly it’s at the discretion of our sabaki; it would be educative to have your thoughts.

      1. Keith,

         I don’t see this as a question of seasonal progression. I agree that seasonal progression is not an issue in this format. The question I have been asking myself is whether we should use, in a non-seasonal verse, an image (such as “Oscars”) that is not a kigo but is clearly occurring at a certain place in the calendar year. My inclination is to avoid that, especially with such an embarrassment of creative alternatives from which to choose.

         1. Something similar was asked during the ‘jo’ section of ‘pilgrim’s stride’
            Pays to read back into the earlier renku sessions 🙂

            Still going through the sessions, quietly.

7. Great to see haiku friends from elsewhere joining the renku.

   short night
   barely time
   to count the stars
   —-
   In haikai mode:

   the television
   on the blink again

   the cleaner says he suffers
   from asteroids

   a sense of vertigo
   when we look down

8. short night
   barely time
   to count the stars
   – Keith Evetts
   *
   and a chorus line in drag
   for their opening number
   – Betty Shropshire

   1. or:
      a chorus line in drag
      for their opening number

9. building a lego tower
   first time since childhood

   (Love all of this, Keith, so inspiring and evocative. Beautiful to write together, thank you John!

10. the heroes of mythology
    in the planetarium dome

11. Beautiful beginning. Many congrats Keith. I am new to renku and find it an absolutely amazing way to learn. Here are me offers :

    short night
    barely time
    to count the stars

    Keith Evetts

    from the bedroom window
    the glint of her nose pin

    or
    in the bedroom window
    the glint of her nose pin

    deep in her dreams
    my daughter’s tremulous smile

    the shimmer of a dream
    from her sequin gown

    in the drawer
    an obituary gone pale

    in her dream diary
    the secrets of first love

    Arvinder Kaur

12. short night
    barely time
    to count the stars

    —
    still dreaming someone else
    will fix the roof

    the cat sleeps
    in a square of light

13. short night
    barely time
    to count the stars
    – Keith Evetts

    after the accident
    dust on the piano

    ***
    the faucet leaking
    a glacial pace

    ***
    left on a park bench
    a book on abandonment

    ***
    every season sanitized
    this blank page

14. short night
    barely time
    to count the stars

    —Keith Evetts

    morning coffee
    the crescent wanes

15. short night
    almost no time
    to count the stars

    Keith Evetts

    while biting nails
    listen to the story

16. Congrats on your hokku, Keith. Both lyrical and intriguing, to my senses.

    awakened by
    the laughing baby

    the soft sheen
    of white satin

    his death poem
    half finished

    the theater dark
    per covid protocols

    1. Thank you, Debbie. I noted from Carley’s piece on the Junicho in Simply Haiku (http://simplyhaiku.com/SHv2n2/renku/junicho.html) the observation that ” the Junicho must have literary value and a sense of stylishness.”

       In that vein your wakiku:

       the soft sheen
       of white satin

       was a lovely read for me

       1. Thank you, Keith. I was thinking honeymoon without using moon, or wedding night, or nightgown, or candlelight, or bedding…it got pared down.

17. a meteor shower
    streaks the sky

    cameras flashing
    as they step out

    already 40
    candles on her cake

    karaoke
    after a few beers

    sheep don’t
    help either

    1. wakes up dreaming
       wishes came true

       vanity mirror
       glowing backstage

18. short night
    barely time
    to count the stars

    Keith Evetts
    *
    forever finding fault
    with the Julian calendar
    *
    what underlay the faults
    of the Julian calendar
    *

19. a dusting of glitter
    from the tooth fairy’s wings

20. Wonderful hokku, Keith!
    .
    short night
    barely time
    to count the stars

    —Keith Evetts
    .
    My offerings:
    .
    cutting it fine
    the heady rush to start point
    .
    holding us in thrall
    the rented series streaming live
    .
    sleepless we open
    the new crossword puzzle
    .
    perching on tall stools
    to try out new flavours
    .
    holding my breath
    I dive into the deep end
    .

21. short night
    barely time
    to count the stars

    Keith Evetts

    even my inbox
    is out of space

    06.26.2022 by wendy © bialek

22. short night
    barely time
    to count the stars

    behind parted curtains
    reciting all the names

    *

    short night
    barely time
    to count the stars

    behind parted curtains
    writing an unsent letter

    *

    short night
    barely time
    to count the stars

    behind parted curtains
    answering the 2 a.m. call

    *

    short night
    barely time
    to count the stars

    behind parted curtains
    sharing a too-real dream

    *

    short night
    barely time
    to count the stars

    behind parted curtains
    waking up old

23. short night
    barely time
    to count the stars

    Keith Evetts

    *

    this cloudless sky
    can’t hold back any thoughts

    06.26.2022 by wendy © bialek

24. short night
    barely time
    to count the stars
    – Keith Evetts
    *
    a constellation of symptoms
    in patient zero
    – Betty Shropshire

    1. or
       the inpatient paints a canvas
       in swirls of blue
       – Betty Shropshire

25. short night
    barely time
    to count the stars

    Keith Evetts

    *

    this cloudless sky
    can’t hold any thoughts

    06.26.2022 by wendy © bialek

26. short night
    barely time
    to count the stars
    — Keith Evetts

    ***
    counting fireflies
    from inside the doghouse
    ***
    fallen angel halos
    in the pawnshop window

27. Good one! Keith
    .
    short night
    barely time
    to count the stars

    my offerings:
    .
    emptying the hostel laundry bag
    into the washing machine
    .
    trying to break a coconut
    into perfect half moon
    .
    picking up the scattered puzzle
    to arrange the morning sun
    .

28. short night
    barely time
    to count the stars

    Keith Evetts
    *
    that insistent tick
    of the biological clock
    *
    soaking travel-weary feet
    in a bucket of Epsom
    *

29. Wonderful start!
    I am so glad to read you all!

    short night
    barely time
    to count the stars
    — Keith Evetts

    halfway zipped
    she doordashes
    *
    a letter left unsigned
    wedged in the door
    *
    mid-shaving
    the breaker jumps
    *
    mastering the gargling
    the solfege

    1. Oups! Should read as follow:

       mastering the gargling
       of solfege

30. short night
    barely time
    to count the stars — Keith Evetts
    .
    the crowd settles down
    for Rocket Man

    1. Just in case: ‘Rocket Man’ the song: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r_QZe8Z66x8
       – in memory of my other great sabaki (r.i.p.) who had been (among other things) a recording studio technician.

31. creative moments
    etched into whalebone

32. I really like the hokku, Keith.
    …
    the clock ticks
    and the baby stirs
    …
    the dawn chorus
    heard from the bed
    …
    he’s hunched over
    his abacus
    …
    money bags
    piled to the vault’s ceiling

33. short night
    barely time
    to count the stars

    Keith Evetts

    *
    too soon for
    the early bird special

    06.25.2022 by wendy © bialek

    1. also considering this version:

       and too soon for
       the early bird special

       06.25.2022 by wendy © bialek

34. her karaoke solo
    becomes a sing-along

    or: a karaoke solo

35. short night
    barely time
    to count the stars
    —Keith Evetts

    a red carpet out
    along the hallway

    fireplace lighting
    her devilish grin

    folding her clothes
    for a long trip home

36. her horoscope suggests
    a bubble bath

37. Good to see this back again. I am really enjoying reading all the offerings. I’m just trying to learn from John’s description of the second verse requirements and judge everything according to his guidance. Kudos to Michael Henry Lee for this one:

    a toast to any and
    everything in sight

    And also to Marietta McGregor for this one:

    the Academy Awards
    on late night cable

    So here is my addition:

    short night
    barely time
    to count the stars — Keith Evetts

    the persistence
    of the alarm clock
    .
    paper rock scissors
    for who feeds the baby

    1. Peggy, I love:

       the persistence
       of the alarm clock

    2. Thanks Peggy! I had a good laugh at your “paper rock scissors”. I can just picture it! Cheers, Marietta

38. What a great hokku to start the renku…Congratulations to Keith! So glad to see John will lead us through this new one!

    short night
    barely time
    to count the stars–Keith Evetts

    a too-long line
    to see Legends in Concert

    not quick enough
    to play League of Legends

39. short night
    barely time
    to count the stars
    – Keith Evetts
    *
    effortlessly gliding
    over the sunken treasure
    – Betty Shropshire

40. This is my first Renku with THF.. I really like the starter from Keith and hope to learn from the experience.

    short night
barely time
to count the stars
— Keith Evetts

    she hands him
    White Riesling and a warm smile

    “I only have eyes for you”
    drifts out the patio doors

    1. Welcome, Linda. You’ll get addicted…

41. short night
    barely time
    to count the stars
    — Keith Evetts

    darker than expected
    my doomscroll

    ***

    tied white sheets
    dangling from the hospital window

42. Congrats Keith on the selection of your haiku to start the renku out.

    short night
    barely time
    to count the stars
    — Keith Evetts

    beginning to work on the sky
    of the jigsaw puzzle
    .
    only a few months
    to stitch the baby’s blanket

    Somehow, I missed seeing that a new renku had been started. I am glad it is back

43. son started playing
    drums in the womb
    ***
    wishing upon a satellite
    from the treehouse

44. sudsing up in the bath
    with a flute of champagne
    *
    picking out a few notes
    of a vintage piano rag
    *

45. short night
    barely time
    to count the stars
    – Keith Evetts
    *
    longshoremen unload
    with a practised ease
    – Betty Shropshire

46. A few more to consider.

    short night
    barely time
    to count the stars
    —Keith Evetts

    another coffee and
    the crossword puzzle

    a quick nap before
    graveyard shift

    Bach’s Cello Suite
    and a spot of tea

47. .
    .
    short night
    barely time
    to count the stars

    – Keith Evetts

    how strange to stroll through
    a spider’s dream.
    .
    .
    short night
    barely time
    to count the stars

    – Keith Evetts

    how old was Galileo
    when the pope apologized?
    .
    .
    short night
    barely time
    to count the stars

    – Keith Evetts

    whiter still
    a cuppa confucian nature
    .
    .
    short night
    barely time
    to count the stars

    – Keith Evetts

    what flair
    in a milk mustache
    .
    .
    short night
    barely time
    to count the stars

    – Keith Evetts

    not one thing between hands
    but this red string
    .
    .

    1. correction:

       how strange to stroll through
       a spider’s dream

       (should be no period after dream)

48. An evocative hokku to get us started off right.

    she finds her old iPod
    and plays a OneRepublic song

    at my back I hear
    the click of cuckoo clock

    reluctantly closing
    the constellation map

49. Congratulations Keith. Great hokku.

    short night
    barely time
    to count the stars

    Keith Evetts

    in his coffin
    Dracula’s stomach rumbles

50. Seedcorn:
    —

    short night
    barely time
    to count the stars
    —
    the almanac’s predictions
    vague enough

    dust dances
    under the glitterball

    the Zodiac forsees
    another prince will come

51. Great to see another renku in progress, John…thanks so much.

    Well done, Keith!

    short night
    barely time
    to count the stars

    always one request
    for Hansel and Gretel

    enthralled by coloured crystals
    in the guesthouse sugar bowl

    make-do daisy chains
    from a box of paperclips

    the warm, coloured beads
    of our homework abacus

    copying Vincent’s painting
    in the art room at school

    1. I’m also enthralled by those coloured crystals in the sugar bowl, Marion! Are you sure the hosts weren’t making do with jelly crystals? 😁. Cheers, Marietta

52. louder this late
    a faraway train

53. short night
    barely time
    to count the stars

    Keith EvettS

    .

    grandfather’s pocket watch
    ticks under a glass dome

    .

    a cricket leaps clear
    of the kitchen sink

54. latest stack of books
    in the bathroom

55. short night
    barely time
    to count the stars
    -Keith Evetts

    good boy cyclops examining
    the parallax error

56. short night
    barely time
    to count the stars
    – Keith Evetts
    *
    while a dark horse
    noses ahead of the pack
    – Betty Shropshire

57. short night
    barely time
    to count the stars
    — Keith Evetts

    ***
    coal miner pausing
    to listen for canary chirps
    ***
    listening to laughter
    echo in the hospice hallway

58. short night
    barely time
    to count the starts
    -Keith Evetts

    a leashed cheetah
    in the sunken bed of creation

    1. “stars” sorry, Keith.

59. short night
    barely time
    to count the stars

    Keith Evetts
    *
    the toddler’s eyes glowing
    with the candles on his cake

60. short night
    barely time
    to count the stars

    Keith Evetts
    *
    grins from the guests
    as the toddler takes center stage
    *

61. Congratulations Keith!

    short night
    barely time
    to count the stars

    Keith Evetts
    .

    motes of flour orbit
    above the baker’s head

    or

    swirling motes of flour
    as she kneads the dough

62. good to see renku sessions return, and a stellar start it is!

    short night
    barely time
    to count the stars
    – Keith Evetts

    *
    dust motes
    in a shaft of light

    binge listening
    to Pavarotti

    only large notes
    in the ATM

    1. Polona, we were both seeing “motes” and posted about them almost simultaneously! Spellcheck wanted to change your name to polonaise, very poetic of it, I thought.

       Jonathan

       1. ha, great minds and so on… 😏
          my name is not related to poland but derived from apollo (apollonia as the female form)

63. short night
    barely time
    to count the stars

    first and only visit
    to the planetarium

    *
    short night
    barely time
    to count the stars

    afternoon show
    at the planetarium

    *
    short night
    barely time
    to count the stars

    an astronomer covers
    and caps her telescope

    *
    short night
    barely time
    to count the stars

    the night watchman
    pats the watchdog

64. short night
    barely time
    to count the stars

    the baby and me crying
    over spilled milk

65. at nine in night
    his timeless wings on incomplete novel
    **

    Power failure
    midnight he gropes for torch
    **

    night labour ward
    she grieves for new born girl baby

    **
    hurried dish washing
    for early morning train
    ***

    stubborn mosquitoes
    dead of rainy night
    ***

    her silenced hour
    other continues argument

66. Congratulations Keith.
    Wonderful comments and explanation for continuing the Renku John, thank you so much.

    Here’s some offerings to consider.

    short night
    barely time
    to count the stars
    —Keith Evetts

    twirling the end
    of a kaleidoscope

    background fills
    with an orchestra

    espresso brewing
    for some affogato

    the candles flicker
    by the Ouiji Board

67. short night
    barely time
    to count the stars

    Keith Evetts
    *
    mudroom light sensor going off
    at the drop of a hat
    **

68. short night
    barely time
    to count the stars

    Keith Evetts
    *
    born on the cusp of science
    and superstition
    *

69. short night
    barely time
    to count the stars

    Keith Evetts
    *
    re-shelving his books
    by the authors’ birth signs
    *

70. the boy rolls
    a hard six

    ***

    another flash
    of cameras in her face

    ***

    he works out
    how many pills she took

    1. Ignore my middle offering. I now see Betty had the same idea, and hers is much better!

       1. No worries, Tracy!
          😊 Betty

71. Hope everyone has a nice weekend
    ***

    counting ceiling tiles
    in the Emergency Room
    ***
    blue streetlights
    fill the beggar’s bowl
    ***
    my dusty book
    on the library shelf

72. short night
    barely time
    to count the stars

    Keith Evetts

    baby’s head crowns
    into her cupped hand
    .

73. Thank you, all – I’m blushing. Meanwhile à toutes fins utiles:

    short night
    barely time
    to count the stars
    —
    the lookout’s dreams
    in the middle watch

    the beleaguered city
    avoids a knockout blow

    our cat Cassiopeia
    has kittens in the closet

74. nice one Keith
    +
    short night
    barely time
    to count the stars

    Keith Evetts
    +
    flotsam on the beach
    left by the tide
    +
    morning sun shining
    on the kitchen spoons

75. Excellent opening verse Keith!

    a toast to any and
    everything in sight

76. short night
    barely time
    to count the stars

    Keith Evetts

    in the office
    boss asks where is the report

77. short night
    barely time
    to count the stars

    Keith Evetts

    he was blinded in a hurry
    to finish the pudding

78. short night
    barely time
    to count the stars

    Keith Evetts

    people inside
    anxiously waiting for the announcement

79. short night
    barely time
    to count the stars -Keith Evetts
    .
    Earthrise still fresh
    in our memories

    1. short night
       barely time
       to count the stars -Keith Evetts
       .
       ‘Rocket Man’ still fresh
       in our memories
       .
       https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r_QZe8Z66x8

80. Congratulations , dear Keith!!
    Lovely❤️

81. Lovely beginning and a wonderful title … Thanks John. Congrats to Keith!

    short night
    barely time
    to count the stars

    Keith Evetts

    Here are my offers …

    people in the photographs
    come back to mind

    *****

    mother measures rice left
    in the vessel

    *****

    spread of papers
    on my lap

    All the best to everyone.

    Smiles
    Amrutha

82. short nights
    barely time
    to count the stars
    — Keith Evetts
    .
    the Academy Awards
    on late night cable
    .
    a parade of geese
    one after another
    .
    only once did he try
    to mend our bed-lamp
    .
    one extra letter taken
    from the Scrabble pile

    —Marietta McGregor

83. Congratulations, Keith! Great start!
    .
    short nights
    barely time
    to count the stars
    — Keith Evetts

    hundreds and thousands*
    on a white bread sandwich
    — Marietta McGregor

    *As a note, these tiny multi-coloured nonpareils were (and still are) a popular snack at Aussie kids’ parties and for school lunches.

    1. And hundreds and thousands sandwiches were never made with wholemeal bread! 🙂

84. short night
    barely time
    to count the stars

    ~ Keith Evetts

    a plate full of hot
    chicken butter masala

85. short night
    barely time
    to count the stars

    Keith Evetts
    .
    unpacking the dishwasher
    by candlelight
    .
    wondering who to give
    Power of Attorney
    .
    another crossed out name
    in my address book

86. munching on millet
    in the mountain monastery
    ***
    monastery mice
    playing tag in the library
    ***
    monks meditate on Mary
    most Monday mornings

87. Congratulations Keith! A very worthy start, the anticipation is almost unbearable in seeing the completion. I particularly like the verse from Betty Shropshire, nice play on an alternate reading of “stars.”

    Here are my offers:

    in the morning I see
    my nest egg has been raided
    *
    the milky way
    sinks in my tea

88. short night
    barely time
    to count the stars

    — Keith Evetts

    the twins discovered reading
    under the duvet

    a small non-speaking part
    for the usherette

    the dark secrets
    of the casting couch

    interrupted by
    a person from Porlock

    the limitations
    of a legal high

    a biosignature
    becoming illegible

89. Many thanks John and congratulations Keith!
    ***
    cleaning his rifle
    in the prison guard tower
    ***
    the prison guard tower
    has seventy-two steps
    ***
    prison guard towers
    glow in the night

90. Thank you Keith for the great start to a feeling I relate to in summer in the northern hemisphere! My continuation brings these images.

    short nights
    barely time
    to count the stars -Keith Evetts

    small bird sings first refrain
    cat tail twitches -deep slumber

91. short night
    barely time
    to count the stars

    Keith Evetts
    *
    serving potage julienne
    in his true classic style

92. Lovely work, Keith, congratulations.

93. June 23, 2022 at 12:29 pm

    short night
    barely time
    to count the stars

    Keith Evetts
    *
    checking into a hotel
    not mentioned in Michelin
    *
    no Michelin rating
    for the restaurant of their dreams
    *

94. short night
    barely time
    to count the stars

    Keith Evetts

    with her breath
    babies head appears

95. Congratulations, Keith, on your wonderful haiku being selected as the hokku. And thanks, John, for commenting on one of mine.

    I’m unsure whether allusive quotations (see the “honkadori” wiki at [https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Honkadori]) are allowed to be used in a renku. If so, the following second verse candidate contains two conflated allusions to famous works by Blaise Pascal and Samuel Beckett:

    “the eternal silence…
    astride of a grave”

    If quotations are disallowed, I’ll come up with a less serious alternative(s) to follow Keith’s great lead verse.

    In my candidate second verse, the first line is from Blaise Pascal and the second from Samuel Beckett.

    “The eternal silence of these infinite spaces terrifies me.” So wrote Blaise Pascal in his Pensées (translated by John Warrington, J. M. Dent & Sons, London, 1960, 1973, page 110), which unintentionally echoes Shôhaku’s haiku:

    “A starlit night;
    The sky,—the size of it,
    The extent of it!”

    Shôhaku’s haiku is translated by R. H. Blyth in his Haiku: Spring, Volume II (Hokuseido Press, 1st printing, 1950, 14th printing, 1971, page 334).

    Samuel Beckett in Waiting for Godot has Pozzo say “suddenly furious” in Act II (Grove Press, 1954, 1982, page 103):

    “Have you not done tormenting me with your accursed time! It’s abominable! When! When! One day, is that not enough for you, one day he went dumb, one day I went blind, one day we’ll go deaf, one day we were born, one day we shall die, the same day, the same second, is that not enough for you? (Calmer.) They give birth astride of a grave, the light gleams an instant, then it’s night once more. (He jerks the rope [connected to Lucky].) On!”

    1. Richard,

       Pretty much anything can be included in a renku but, once included in a short renku, it creates a set of “classes” of things that cannot then be repeated. So, a quotation means no more quotations. A literary reference means no more literary references. And, in fact, no more art works of any kind when the renku is only twelve verses. Our hope is to reflect as many different aspects of the universe as we can fit into twelve verses. There is no room for repetition. We need to be careful about applying this principle, however, because everything is connected – if not directly, then through a chain of intermediate connections. So, we need to be careful to not get carried away with finding such connections. We might think of the process as guiding a reader’s attention to what will seem like a great variety of entities. The sense of forward, onward motion is important. And, as long as a relationship to something already presented is not so clear as to impede that sense of forward motion, we are okay.

       Something I should have mentioned in my instructions for verse two is that it should contain no grammatical breaks. Only the hokku has a two-part structure. The subsequent renku verses present a juxtaposition of images, not within the verses themselves, but through consideration when juxtaposed with the preceding verse.

       P.S. I played Vladimir/Didi.

       1. Thanks, John, for the helpful explanation. I forgot to mention, as you know, that Vladimir (“Didi”) echoes Pozzo’s words “astride of a grave” in Waiting for Godot (ibid., page 104). His lines are perhaps more memorable than Pozzo’s.

          Here’s a nonallusive second verse candidate:

          short night
          barely time
          to count the stars

          card players cross-legged
          on a grey cottage’s floor

96. *
    i’m loving this!!!!! many thanks to john for imparting his deep wisdom with these weekly renku nuggets, i look forward too….as a special dessert of my life.
    (thanks, also, for posting my haiku here, and yes, you are correct that i was aware….when choosing from the list….that we were not limited to early summer kigo….in such a “short” renku….with just one summer verse)
    an abundance of congrats to keith on a spectacular hokku, and high ranking start to our renku, and title….”barely time”:

    short night
    barely time
    to count the stars

    Keith Evetts

    *
    endless shootings and
    rations on toilet paper

    06.23.2022 by wendy © bialek

97. Second stanza offer:

    rockets light the sky
    stuffing my backpack

98. short night
    barely time
    to count the stars

    Keith Evetts
    *
    sneaking in late
    with her shoes in her hand
    *

99. Well done, Keith!!
    *
    short night
    barely time
    to count the stars
    – Keith Evetts
    *
    a flash of bulbs at the one
    on the red carpet
    – Betty Shrophire

    1. so nicely done, Betty–two kinds of stars in such a small space. Really like this!

       1. Thank you, Laurie! 😊

    2. Good one, Betty! 🙂

    3. a flash of bulbs at the one
       on the red carpet
       – Betty Shrophire
       .
       I like the twist of this one, in relation to the hokku, a lot, Betty. From the heavenly stars to the . . . other stars. It’d be hard to top it, methinks 🙂

       1. short night
          barely time
          to count the stars

          Keith Evetts

          he was blinded in a hurry
          to finish the pudding

       2. Jeez, Lorin! 😁 I’m sure with this group many more will crop up!!
          But. Thank you . . . your kuddos mean a lot to me!
          🥰 Betty

    4. another fan of this one, Betty 🙂

100. What a wonderful beginning!
     Congratulations, Keith–I loved this verse from the first–so glad to have it start us off.
     And John, thanks for mentioning one of mine, and for the fascinating and illuminating comments. Learned something from each of them!
     *
     short night
     barely time
     to count the stars

     Keith Evetts
     *
     a handful of pins
     for hemming up the skirt
     *

101. In it just for the buzz now, or that others might pick up and run with these:

     caviar ads between
     newsflashes of the war

     confessing everything
     to a stranger on the plane

     1. soooooo coooooool irony, keith !!!!

        1. This was based on actual observation. Google inserted ads the algorithm felt were relevant to those viewing the latest Reuters reports on the Russian invasion. On one day, there were ads for caviar. Meanwhile on ITV the bulletin about Ukraine was split by…. an ad for sofas. I had my mobile handy for notes…

102. congrats to Keith .. and yes, so nice to be back at renku. Here is my proposal for the second link.

     short night
     barely time
     to count the stars — Keith Evetts

     decals in the nursery
     still dimly fluorescent

103. Thank you, John! An honour to be selected for the hokku. As to the content of it – you read my mind. And the stars are of course the wonderful poets here.

     And thanks for the enlightening commentaries on a spread of fine verses.

     It’s so nice to be back at renku.

     1. Congratulations, Keith. An excellent beginning to our renku. 🙂

     2. Congrats Keith – a lovely hokku to start with!

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