The Monthly Kukai Voting Ballot — May 2021
This month’s theme:
spontaneity
Voting for The Haiku Foundation Monthly Kukai
Shortly after the conclusion of the submission period, an anonymous ballot comprising all submitted poems on that month’s theme will be posted to Troutswirl (The Haiku Foundation blog) on the THF site. Any reader of this ballot is eligible to vote for their favorite poems at this time. A voter may vote for up to five (5) poems per theme. A top vote will receive 5 points, a second-place vote 4 points, a third-place vote 3 points, a fourth-place vote 2 points, and a fifth-place vote 1 point.
Please use the Kukai voting form below to enter your selections, and then press Submit to cast your votes. No other votes will be recognized or honored. All votes must be signed (that is, no “anonymous” votes will be accepted, and the Submit button will not be available until both Name and Email fields are filled in), and no poet may vote for his or her own work. No commentary upon the poems will be accepted or published. Votes will be accepted from the appearance of the ballot on the 18th of that month through midnight of the 24th of that month. Readers may vote only once per ballot. Administrators of the kukai are ineligible to vote.
The Ballot
1 | a butter-flutter and a toddler — instantaneous | |
2 | a flurry of feathers against the sky pink boa | |
3 | a serenade from one balcony to another . . . lockdown day | |
4 | ah me how suddenly the sun melts in the sea | |
5 | all night spontaneous knocking on my door immunity vigil | |
6 | alternate route — at the end of the road an oasis | |
7 | ancient copse a gust of wind fills it with light | |
8 | autistic child — wings of butterflies his gestures | |
9 | ‘Because I felt like it’ . . . Etna defends herself After eruption | |
10 | birth in a breath my life | |
11 | black out siren — mother cradles the baby closer to her heart | |
12 | breathing the spring air — a spontanous love | |
13 | brown wren in the hurricane fence the thought blown away | |
14 | by his right ear a mosquito buzz he slapsticks himself | |
15 | C.P.A: forms, numbers, ledgers, rules, humdrum, precision, fact. One moment, nature beckoned; haiku written. | |
16 | calling my lost cat a cacophony of alley dogs | |
17 | changing directions a whiff of fresh-baked pizza reels me in | |
18 | cherry blossom my grateful palm breaks its fall | |
19 | child realising a balloon that disappears — that was the future once | |
20 | child-free Mother’s Day daydreaming in bed | |
21 | child’s laughter gently ripples by-passed heart | |
22 | clean sheet of paper — doodles appear in legions after the art-class | |
23 | coffee alfresco strangers strike up a talk of violins | |
24 | coiled garden hose blooms to delight children spring showers | |
25 | cold rain where to hide your head turtle | |
26 | coming of spring a toddler follows his dog into the sea | |
27 | coming to be by and of itself unforced lily | |
28 | connecting in spite of the mask his crow’s feet smile | |
29 | countryside walk — inhaling earth aromas she breaks into a song | |
30 | crying child . . . co-passengers enact ‘The Lion King’ | |
31 | Cuckoo . . . sings beautifully want to listen eyes closed? | |
32 | Dancing alone Autumn follows me Through spring. | |
33 | dandelion fluff the grave digger humming a farewell song | |
34 | desert shower the tang of sage blossoms | |
35 | dusk suddenly astir with fireflies our backyard garden | |
36 | early spring . . . along a path wildflowers | |
37 | early wake up call a new grandson I love him already | |
38 | elusive — a vaquita a corpse flower | |
39 | empty playground mud puddle full of giggles | |
40 | fallen tree branch — I go home a mother | |
41 | falling petals . . . the actor becomes aware his spontaneity | |
42 | field mouse the sudden swoop of an owl | |
43 | first a bird then a fish-shaped cloud | |
44 | first date pretending to know how to read palms | |
45 | first swing ride he flaps his arms in the breeze | |
46 | flourishing juntos native and not . . . mediterranean sprouts | |
47 | foolish decisions an old man regrets | |
48 | footsteps halt on the wooden bridge — white pond lilies | |
49 | from where I go the sea’s emerald waves fractals | |
50 | full moon . . . he grabs the loaf from the dumpster | |
51 | gasping for breath my father says this too shall pass | |
52 | hanging wisteria the vine climbs the wall | |
53 | heading home — sunroof open whistling Dixie | |
54 | her perfume — out of dead silence whispers come | |
55 | her smile at passers-by a flowering meadow | |
56 | her tail flicked over my computer screen her paw slapped the mouse | |
57 | homeless and dog the last piece of meat for a pet | |
58 | honeysuckle moved to tears by the impromptu gift i | |
59 | hugs by the waterfall salmon leap | |
60 | I escape on a whim a thousand miles away his ‘Dear John’ postcard | |
61 | In the back garden A raspberry falls from a vine A child pops it in his mouth | |
62 | In the pursuit of mutual understanding leave no stone unturned | |
63 | instagram — her carefully crafted spontaneity | |
64 | intoxicated old man following the flight of a butterfly — | |
65 | invisible army of un-worldly devastating power ‘corona virus’ | |
66 | isolation drinking black thoughts in white wine already spontaneously | |
67 | jazz festival in the midsummer night a bird’s reply | |
68 | kitchen dance party . . . grabbing the cat for some boogie woogie | |
69 | knickers on her knees — smashed after ten pints or just spontaneous | |
70 | last note of birdsong floats in through my window — I bow | |
71 | lead goose honking arms spread open below kids taking off | |
72 | leaking roof my pail catching the shadow of a thin stream | |
73 | left turn not missing another chance to waste a summer day | |
74 | lockdown she adopts a street dog | |
75 | long shopping my kid tries to play football with bodyguards | |
76 | look at mama’s pearl necklace on my 21st birthday dad hugged me tight | |
77 | lottery ticket hopes dampened by the first raindrop | |
78 | Luck arrive in spontaneity flying yellow butterfly . . . | |
79 | Masked face and eyes wide I trust that you lust for me But, without touching | |
80 | memorial bench — finding myself in her favourite place | |
81 | mid-life crisis a streak of silver sportscar | |
82 | mighty mountains the climber falls in love with the mightiest | |
83 | Monday morning I try hard to figure out my spontaneity of Sunday love | |
84 | monsoon drizzle — the fish in glass bowl swims round and round | |
85 | moonlit evening so close her hand | |
86 | Museum painting — At dock-yard; An old boats hurl. | |
87 | my hat full of autumn rain a boy in the sand | |
88 | my smile seeing the sleeping babe smile | |
89 | new bird feeder hangs lunchtime flocks taking their turns then squirrels invade | |
90 | no roots all my possessions in the trunk | |
91 | nothing is spontaneous baby, everything is manufactured | |
92 | off day i cancel everything | |
93 | one minute ’til noon his last cigarette he braces for white knuckles | |
94 | one weed dies another comes up call it a flower | |
95 | picture book — a baby tries to scroll | |
96 | playground swing throwing caution to the wind | |
97 | pounces on itself and manages to escape young kitten | |
98 | prison yard — on a walk a butterfly | |
99 | puppet theater — my girl takes my hand when the wolf appears | |
100 | rain clouds one flower touches the other in the force of the breeze | |
101 | red horizon the wild goose skWOnk! of free jazz | |
102 | rime frosted petals a flock of mallards lifts from the river | |
103 | roaring clouds midway to our car, we turn and become rain | |
104 | shards of laughter in the starry night crickets stop singing | |
105 | she broke up her usual schedule spontaneous divorce | |
106 | she signs with her maiden name newly married | |
107 | she throws herself in the waves — the drowning child is saved | |
108 | smell of straw — caressing the sheep’s chin he licks my hand | |
109 | snow squall juncos chasing juncos | |
110 | solstice a farmer grass-seeding the early snow | |
111 | spontaneity a very heavy ‘door’ opens easily | |
112 | spontaneity gives me pause for concern | |
113 | spontaneity of choice and its endless possibilities — | |
114 | spontaneously first rose and my haiku bloom | |
115 | spring equinox the push of each petal | |
116 | spring morning I’m singing with birds out of tune | |
117 | spring rain jumping into a puddle robin and me | |
118 | spring rain . . . soon we become our own gods | |
119 | staring at the stars . . . one dives out of the sky into the lake | |
120 | stopping to kiss under a sudden moon the first flush of stars | |
121 | strange shoots — golden rain trees inside my pots | |
122 | strangers’ wedding his hand on my back, round and round the hall | |
123 | strawberry moon housemaid adds fruit salad to the menu | |
124 | street pigeons crafting geometric shapes with thrown bread | |
125 | summer delight my little one slurps at the sight of ripe mangoes | |
126 | summer rain — turning the car toward the rainbow | |
127 | summer road trip suddenly filling the car with Bohemian Rhapsody | |
128 | super bowl monday the office reduced to a skeleton crew | |
129 | surfing channels the flickering laughter of an old heart-throb | |
130 | swan lake . . . grandma raises her arms for a petite pose | |
131 | temporary lull water drop clings to the leaf tip | |
132 | the instant absolute of sidereal time dandelion seed aloft | |
133 | the wind blowing a haiku in my notebook three cherry petals | |
134 | twin rainbows . . . by the end of the phrase just half | |
135 | two breadsticks and a coffee can . . . our troupe’s drummer | |
136 | watching sitcom reruns on a monday morning i chill | |
137 | welcome home grandma pours some water into the soup | |
138 | whistle milk boiler’s saturation unchecked blow | |
139 | whistling wind a tornado touches down before siren’s call | |
140 | who should we trust now how to begin to know best she speaks, look within | |
141 | wild night in Vegas I wake up with amnesia . . . and a wedding ring | |
142 | will the mouse zig or zag? gamblers placing bets on numbered holes | |
143 | winter sunlight in a pool on the carpet the kids play beach | |
144 | you come home — it’s dark “surprise” we shout — lights go on you stand naked — stunned |
Kukai Results
On the first day of the following month, results of the tally of the kukai will be announced. The top vote-getters as voted by readers will be posted, along with the number of points each poem tallied, and each poem’s authorship will be revealed at this time. Winners will be invited to select from a list of prizes provided by The Haiku Foundation. The theme for the new month will be announced at the same time, and the process repeated. Poems remain the copyrighted property of their authors, but The Haiku Foundation reserves the right to publish, display and archive all submitted poems for this and other purposes at its discretion.
Congratulations to all our participants!
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I’m interested in Haiku. Congratulations fou this Foundation.