The Renku Sessions: Cotton Clouds – Week 10

Welcome to the current renku session. I am John Stevenson and I’ll be your guide for a twenty verse, nijûin renku.

We will be using an on-line list of season words and phrases (kigo) for those verses that require a seasonal reference:  https://yths.org/season-word-list/

Here is my short list of verse 10 offerings:

silence of the damned
and the detained

Richard Straw

a montage of misery
in the palm of a hand

Richard Straw

the dreaded homework
finally completed

Eavonka Ettinger

traffic jam from
rubbernecking the crash

Eavonka Ettinger

another year
another time capsule

Diana Ming Jeong

shots fired at
the starving rioters

Harrison Lightwater

paper cuts
not withstanding

Michael Henry Lee

when is a war crime
not a war crime?

Tracy Davidson

too many words
disturb our sleep

Belinda Behne

she stirs her coffee
clockwise

Diana Ming Jeong

last train
left us standing

VJ Green

recognition
in a newborn’s eye

Jo McInerney

checking time zones
for the livestream

Debbie Feller

children’s bedtime ritual
of wanting the same books

Nancy Brady

three bolts left
after assembly

Orense Nicod

a look through the yearbook
in search of a prequel

Laurie Greer

draw the bowstring
and loose an arrow

Margaret Anderson

pumping air
into the bike tires

Debbie Scheving

where have all
the travel agents gone

rob barkan

I won’t try to summarize the various approaches taken this time. They are very numerous, just as they should be! Thank you for the wealth of possibilities.

Some of these offers have been passed over only because the authors already have a verse included in the renku. I am glad poets already included continue to participate. It enriches our experience and hopefully theirs. With only twenty verses and well over twenty poets offering work, some will have to make due with the experience of participation.

Here is my choice for the tenth verse:

paper cuts
not withstanding

Michael Henry Lee

Even more than most of the linking we have done, so far, this combination of verses works like a single unit. The previous three lines give us a somber metaphor for life. The two added lines metaphorically put our life challenges in proper perspective with a bit of rueful humor.

So, here is what we have, so far:

Cotton Clouds (working title)

a pinto colt
canters the meadow
cotton clouds

John Stevenson

muddied boots
on the welcome mat

Jennifer Sutherland

a bounty
of tulips spilling
over the vase

Eavonka Ettinger

the comfort of song
sung together

Anne Fox

the hermit crab’s
new shell glistens
in the moonlight

Sally Biggar

he fell for the sundress
on bare shoulders

Debbie Scheving

sweet nothings
with a hint
of Bengay

Diana Ming Jeong

we tip the busker
for attempting ‘teen spirit’

Margaret Anderson

everyone dies
at the end but
we keep reading

Devin Wilson

paper cuts
not withstanding

Michael Henry Lee

This week, we will be working on the eleventh verse. This will be three lines. It will be a winter verse, so it must contain a word or phrase from our list of winter season words.

Please enter a maximum of five verse-eleven offers. The deadline for submission will be midnight, eastern US time on Monday, June 30.

Let’s add a bit of chill to the renku.

John

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