Renku Sessions

The Renku Sessions: Rendezvous – Week 8

 

renku_300

The Renku Sessions continue on The Haiku Foundation. I am Patricia Machmiller and I am honored to be your guide for an eighteen-verse renku, in which we will compose one verse per week until completion.

Hello, everyone. After a long week this verse hit home:

when everyone is in
lockdown – where
do the homeless go?

Kanjini Devi

This verse is not a candidate for the renku because it’s not an autumn verse, and yet it is so relevant to our time. Thank you, Kanjini, for reminding us that the most vulnerable in our society are in the greatest danger.

Apologies to you all. I had some deadlines to meet the last few days and so I didn’t catch some questions before the midnight hour on Tuesday. So, these answers don’t help for this round, but perhaps they may be useful going forward.

Of sardines and things: Yes, I think if we are using them for the seasonal element, they should be live or being prepared or being caught or be involved in some activity that occurs in the season. Opening a can of sardines or seeing them in a painting—these occurrences do not evoke a season.

Regarding using a kigo that someone else has used first: I don’t see it as bad form. Renku writing is a collaborative endeavor and the energy of the creative process feeds on the group offerings. That includes one person’s suggested kigo triggering another person’s idea. This has been my experience writing renku in Japan—the most important thing is the poem. The idea is to share contributions so that from the group the best verse emerges. Actually, if we were together writing and offering verses in real time, there would be much more collaboration and group revision of verses; the primary goal is to make a better poem.

And Robert, I think Lorin’s information about goats and sheep was spot on.

Finally, on the question of “bushfire” and “wildfire” as indicators of autumn: clearly “bushfire” has a very strong association with summer for many. And even the association of “wildfire” with autumn has been weakened by what has happened in recent years. So, thank you to those who offered verses with those topics; in the end I decided they could not do the work we needed for this verse.

Here are some verse that struck me as possible candidates for this, the seventh verse:

 

inmates
on a treadmill
grinding corn

Carol Jones

 

in this swirling fog
my world and I are lost
to each other

*

covered in hoar frost
the world has aged
overnight

Judt Shrode

 

the pear he knocked
off the kitchen table
is also bruised

*

it’s a long wait
in the long queue
for new rice

Lorin Ford

 

in stillness
falling leaves
change direction

*

in early light
the frost covered leaves
become one

Steve Tabb

 

leaves gather
on the seats of the swings
in the closed playground

*

once more Persephone
returns to
the underworld

Andrew Shimield

 

disconnected
after a long night
on hold

Michael Henry Lee

 

stowaway cricket
carefully considers
the new terrain

Clysta Seney

 

left alone
the apple core
darkens

Mark Powderhill

 

scratching
an early layer of frost
from metal handlebars

Marilyn Potter

 

testing the water
stags tussle
on the hillside

Robert Kingston

 

grilled matsutake
more costly
than ever

*

hint of truffles
flavoring
the turducken

*

an opened sesame
seed packet
from India

Betty Shropshire

 

sea salt air
the only hint of the beach
in this fog

Linda Weir

 

making our way
through the fog
we reached the mountain top

Pauline O’Carolan

 

the earth receives
countless numbers
of fallen leaves

Debbie Scheving

 

enjoying a bag
of toasted
pumpkin seeds

M. R. Defibaugh

 

her pet budgie
laid to rest
under fallen leaves

Liz Ann Winkler

 

 

My final choices came down to these two:

 

once more Persephone
returns to
the underworld

Andrew Shimield

 

an opened sesame
seed packet
from India

Betty Shropshire

 

I like how both of these verses turned the gate in the previous verse into something mythical; in Andrew’s verse it becomes the entrance to the underworld, in Betty’s it the entrance to a cave. Both verses bring in allusions to old stories—Andrew’s back to Greek mythology; Betty’s back to a middle eastern folk tale. Andrew’s verse is very forthright in his reference to the Greek myth whereas Betty has cleverly disguised the allusion to “Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves” in her verse. Although both verses would make fine additions to our poem, the more subtle linking to the previous verse gives Betty’s verse the edge.

One more thing about these verses—the larger stories they allude to are love stories which lays the groundwork for our next verse.

So, here is our poem so far:

 

rendezvous —
snowshoes piled high
outside the sauna                         Sally Biggar

 

an antiphonal greeting
of one wolf to the others             Mary Kendall

 

the jury still out
on gray
vs grey                                             Laurie Greer

 

a little half-
and-half in my tea                           M. R. Defibaugh

 

scarecrows and
moons are the best
listeners                                             Dan Campbell

 

at the autumn gates
who can hear me now                     Wendy C. Bialek

 

an opened sesame
seed packet
from India                                           Betty Shropshire

 

And now instructions and considerations for our eighth verse, a love verse.  This verse should link to the seventh verse, but have no connection to the sixth verse. The requirements for this verse are:

  • a two-line poem of fourteen syllables or less
  • this is a love verse. It is the first of a sequence of two or possibly three verses. In the renku the love verses are romantic love, not love of children or love of parents, for example. Note that we should avoid four-legged animals and musical references for one more verse. Avoid the mention of colors for the next two verses, no beverages for the next three, no celestial references for four verses, and no building structures like gates, fences, houses, doors, etc. for five verses. Avoid proper names and seed-like things for six verses; avoid foreign countries for a long while.
  • a single syntactical structure flowing over two lines

Please enter your verses in the comments box, below. I will be reviewing these offers until midnight on Tuesday, April 14 (California time zone). On Thursday, April 16, there will be a new posting containing my selection for the eighth verse, some discussion of other appreciated verses, and instructions for composing the ninth verse.

Please stay safe and healthy. Do take all precautions. I hope you are enjoying the renku writing process. Even though we are trying to write a great poem, the best way to do that is to be playful and let your mind be free. And I look forward to hearing what’s on it!

Patricia

This Post Has 240 Comments

  3. second blind date
    sharing a ventilator

    *
    a snake’s proposal
    pops from the rattan basket

  5. we still sing in a low voice
    the words of our song

    *****************************

    while it’s raining outside
    I loosen the knot of his tie

    *****************************

    you wrap me with your wool scarf
    when you feel my cough

    1. your last verse is so tender, angiola

      .
      your second verse, “outside” has been used in first verse (hokku) and “out” third verse..(diasan) in renku.

      .
      your first verse….refers to music….which will be introduced next time….so maybe you can render it in three lines and submit next time in week 9

      1. thank you Wendy, I am not very expert in renku, but I like to participate, and I don’t speak the English language

    2. rob you need a two liner for this one…..how about:
      *
      landing on the wrong desk
      the paper plane with her number
      *
      or
      *
      paper plane with her number
      lands on the wrong desk

      1. Thanks Wendy. Don’t know what came over me.
        Thanks for your suggestions.
        I Will give it some thought.

        Kind regards
        Rob

  7. her eyes fixed
    on his bhangra moves
    *
    his and her families
    arrange their rendezvous
    *
    her journal entries
    fill with love poems
    *
    she slips her email address
    into his pocket

  8. an opened sesame
    seed packet
    from India
    .
    Betty Shropshire
    .
    in her wake
    a heart in the mirror

    1. Robert, was it your verse that mentioned a paper plane or origami plane, in a past session?
      This would fit the bill, here, I’m sure.
      With the mention of ‘from India’
      .
      No harm in popping it in.

      1. I think it is too late. Also I think it was a two liner.
        Thanks for the heads up though Carole.

  9. an opened sesame
    seed packet
    from India
    .
    Betty Shropshire
    .
    above the veil
    she promises with a long gaze
    .
    or
    .
    above the mask
    she promises with a long gaze

  11. her tongue piercing
    and other treasures

    *

    his wish: one night
    and one thousand more

    *

    my wish: one night
    and one thousand more

    1. “yellow” is a colour…..dan…..in patricia’s rule’s above:

      And now instructions and considerations for our eighth verse, a love verse. This verse should link to the seventh verse, but have no connection to the sixth verse. The requirements for this verse are:

      a two-line poem of fourteen syllables or less
      this is a love verse. It is the first of a sequence of two or possibly three verses. In the renku the love verses are romantic love, not love of children or love of parents, for example. Note that we should avoid four-legged animals and musical references for one more verse. Avoid the mention of colors for the next two verses, no beverages for the next three, no celestial references for four verses, and no building structures like gates, fences, houses, doors, etc. for five verses. Avoid proper names and seed-like things for six verses; avoid foreign countries for a long while.
      a single syntactical structure flowing over two lines

  19. Congratulations, Betty, I’m upping the intrigue! Thank you, Patricia, for your extended elaborations on your picks!
    *
    an opened sesame
    seed packet
    from India
    .
    Betty Shropshire
    *
    his proposal from the front
    S.W.A.K.
    *
    [sealed with a kiss]
    *
    ~Autumn

    1. That was meant to say “congratulations ON upping the intrigue.” Not “I’m”. It would be challenging indeed to up the intrigue ON your verse!!! $&@# autocorrect…

    2. “Congratulations ON upping the intrigue”. Not “I’m.”

      Not sure it would be possible to up the intrigue on your exotic verse—but autocorrect apparently feels up to the challenge!

      1. Initially, my first comment wouldn’t post. Then it posted along with my second attempt. I think I’ll quit while I’m behind..
        : /

    5. Or as the extension goes Autumn
      .
      She Walks About Like Kakia
      sweeping up the stars

  20. Congrats Betty and previous poets who have had verses chosen – still following the renku and will try to be more active.
    .
    .
    how to decide
    if someone is worth swiping
    .
    he comes
    in secret
    .
    in every nerve
    high tide
    .
    that fork in his mouth
    tastes of fleece
    .
    a bad day made worse
    by a dead battery
    .
    .

  21. brushing her hair
    jumpstarts my battery
    ###########
    murder suicide pacts
    guarantee harmony

  23. an opened sesame
    seed packet
    from India
    .
    Betty Shropshire
    .
    tipping the scales
    with her come with me walk

  24. .
    checking out the banyan roots
    he asks if I want children
    .
    .
    .
    .
    Sorry, this is a duplicate. My feed was strangely messed up, and this verse came up as a reply to someone else’s verse (??). I restarted my phone, and it seems to be ok now.

    Judt

      1. Thank you, Michael—I was delighted to find last night that this one came up trumps! 🙂

  29. Great verse, Betty. Brought me back to our local pantomime…in fact
    .
    first kiss in the back row
    of the town hall pantomime

  30. they emerge from spelunking
    deeply in love
    *
    bonding over stalagmites
    deep underground
    *
    spelunking their way
    into each other’s hearts
    *

    1. “spelunking” is such a great word, isn’t it, Laurie? When I first heard it I thought it was a euphemism for naughtiness! 🙂

      1. Ha ha–no telling what goes on underground. Plus it has that slight awkwardness about it that also fits for a tender new love.

  31. &&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&

    an opened sesame
    seed packet
    from India
    .
    Betty Shropshire

    *
    sandalwood incense
    reignites their first time

      1. yes, thank you, dan….just perfect, cooking up a storm, barring high allergy day & arthritis attacks with rain on its way.
        .
        and how is you & yours…spent, dan?

        1. thanks carol….i’m good!
          *
          how’s betty….hope she is not in the path of tornadic activity.

      1. thanks, marion….that wasn’t betty’s….it was mine.

        *
        don’t know where betty is….worried ’cause there were wild tornadoes in texas last night….and i know she lives there.

  32. &&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&

    an opened sesame
    seed packet
    from India
    .
    Betty Shropshire

    *
    sandelwood incense
    reignites their first time

  34. there are no words
    for just how much
    ***
    they would often arrange
    marriages with their eyes
    ***
    the tiny chapel
    where they eloped

    1. long and slender
      is her middle finger
      ##########
      her smile can disappear
      for days but always returns
      #########

    1. her work boots
      more sexy than lingerie
      .
      Apologies for the cheek, Dan! 🙂 🙂 🙂

  38. thatched hut honeymoon suite
    with holes in the roof
    ###########
    the priest laughed
    when she said I do?
    ###########
    I hid the banjo
    until the honeymoon

    1. Dan, the story behind “banjo” intrigued me. Save for next week when music is allowed?

  40. synchronizing their pace
    on the gravel walk
    *
    her steadying hand as he pulls
    a pebble from his shoe
    *

  41. forever a groomsman
    yet never a groom
    ***********************
    stirring up a little
    heat in her kitchen
    ****************
    illusory as ever are
    the mysteries of love

  42. Less obvious options:
    .
    .
    attempting meditation
    my mind sneaks away to him
    .
    .
    attempting meditation
    my mind slips away to him
    .
    .

  43. Verse 2:
    …
    he cast his rod
    then reeled her in
    …
    Verse 3:
    …
    she took her heart
    and left it at his feet
    …
    Verse 4:
    …
    she sent him a parcel
    and her heart
    …
    Verse 5:
    …
    the ink dried
    before her tears
    …
    Verse 6:
    …
    by the holy river
    we lay down together
    …
    Verse 7:
    …
    he said that love won’t grow
    if it’s not fed
    …
    Verse 8:
    …
    she sent a letter to her love
    and it came back

  45. richly rewarded with love
    after 40
    *
    saving his attachments
    to a folder marked “treasure”
    *

  46. or: a couple of variations
    .
    an opened sesame
    seed packet
    from India – Betty Shropshire
    .
    the millionaire’s next bride
    bursting with excitement
    .
    the billionaire’s next bride
    bursting with excitement
    .

  48. an opened sesame
    seed packet
    from India — Betty Shropshire
    .
    the millionaire’s bride
    bursting with excitement
    .

    1. I like the forty thieves reference, Kanjini, but if they can’t steal it what chance has a lover?

  52. reading her last love letter
    a tear under the signature

    *
    when I leave I offer her
    a forget-me-not flower

    *
    of her endless longing
    I have more one white night

  55. something in the way she
    bites into a hamburger
    ***
    his man bun becoming
    her quarantine fantasy
    ***
    hearts drawn in chalk
    on her driveway
    ***
    wrapped up in her arms for
    well over one thousand nights
    ***
    she was the thief who stole
    my heart in one night
    ***
    you could say we took
    a magic carpet ride

    1. I guess any mention of the night might be to close to the moon verse, though.

  56. an opened sesame
    seed packet
    from India
    .
    Betty Shropshire
    .
    out of the norm
    he paints her toe nails
    .
    he paints her nails
    to break the boredom
    .
    his and her jackets
    attached at the cuff on the line

    2. “he paints her nails” makes me think of breaking a nail trying to open the packet, and it speaks to the boredom many are feeling now in quarantine. Well done! I assume painting nails isn’t in violation of color?

      1. Thanks for the interest M.R
        Yes, boredom is working in some wicked and wonderful ways.
        We’ll have to see if Patricia accepts it.

  59. partaking of the essence
    of the finest essential oils
    *

    the tricks of a handful
    of the finest essential oil
    *

  61. an opened sesame
    seed packet
    from India
    .
    Betty Shropshire
    .
    he whipped up tasty dishes
    for the first date

  62. an opened sesame
    seed packet
    from India
    .
    Betty Shropshire
    .
    he whipped up tasty Asian dishes
    for the first date

  63. an opened sesame
    seed packet
    from India
    .
    Betty Shropshire
    .
    spin the bottle
    for his first kiss

  64. an opened sesame
    seed packet
    from India
    .
    Betty Shropshire
    .
    airmail letters
    tell their story

    1. Congratulations Betty – a lovely verse. Hope your move takes you somewhere more dear to you and gives you strength and joy.

  66. sharing a cup of hot
    chocolate under the blanket
    ########
    between lonely and lucky
    in dictionaries
    ########
    I first found love
    in alphabet soup

  67. sang my serenade
    under the wrong window
    #########
    her big brown eyes
    still melt my heart
    ########
    big balls sparked
    a long lasting love
    (I served in the Peace Corps in El Salvador many years ago and one weekend Zoila saw me playing basketball and began talking to me because she liked my legs!)

  68. our first date postponed
    until further notice
    ******************
    on line dating leaves
    a lot to be desired
    *****************
    checking me checking
    her in the miror

  71. traveling light hearted
    on their long-awaited cruise
    *
    everything they need
    in a pair of matching backpacks
    *

  72. It is a very cever, subtle verse, Betty. Congratulations. I hope you are feeling better today after your exhausting day yesterday. Pauline
    …
    Verse 1:
    …
    he finds enlightenment
    between her thighs

  73. an opened sesame
    seed packet
    from India
    .
    Betty Shropshire
    .
    the Beatles found their Yogi
    but fans kept their love

  74. an opened sesame
    seed packet
    from India
    .
    Betty Shropshire
    .
    the Beatles found their Yogi
    but fans kept in love

  75. in those days table
    crumbs were magnificent
    *
    old love story
    in fifteen photos
    *
    she navigated that birthmark
    for decades

  77. still another slight revision
    .
    the state of their union
    in an office gossipfest

        1. Thanks, Robert. You’re right, it isn’t needed. But to my ear it adds emphasis and a touch of warmth to ‘first.’ I can’t really explain.
          Thanks very much for your response!

          1. I know what you mean, Judt. To my ear, it helps the rhythm, but it also allows the speaker to linger lovingly on something beloved.

  83. the forgotten lei
    in the back seat
    *
    Or
    remembering the lei
    in the back seat
    *
    I saw one on a dashboard this morning

  86. a roller coaster ride
    of forty-three years
    #######
    she pours me coffee
    during the argument
    ########
    roosters crowed
    over our first kiss
    (I was 12 years old, it was in a barnyard and her name was Janice)

    1. Dan, the three of these together make a sweet story. The rooster crow made me smile. The roller coaster is relatable. “she pours me coffee…”
      is similar to a verse I have on my frig:
      at the height
      of the argument the old couple
      pour each other tea
      .
      George Swede

  87. making our lunch date
    for the drive in movie
    ********************
    our struggle with desire
    begins with a kiss
    ********************
    illusory as the wind,
    her proposition

  89. their regular tryst
    at the hummingbird feeder
    *
    biting his tongue
    before he can say it
    *
    they gather up the beads
    for restringing later
    *

    1. “they gather up the beads…” is intriguing. The strand broke how? With possibilities to move forward in “…later.”

  90. using ‘breach’ as a verb.
    .
    one more into the breach
    with our flights of fancy

  91. A question, Patricia. Is there a time sequence in love verses…new/young love to long-time/old love? Thanks.

    Judt

    2. Hi, Judt–there is a time sequence in the love verses. But that doesn’t mean the first verse in the sequence has to be young love or the beginning of a romance. It just means that whenever the first verse in the sequence starts, the next verse must be farther along in the relationship. So some renku leaders might think it’s risky to choose, as the first verse of a love sequence, a verse that is deep into the relationship because it limits your choices for the subsequent love verses. But I’m not too concerned, Love has many phases: teen-age love, college love, engagement, marriage, pregnancy, divorce, remarriage, second-time-around love, love in the golden years. I would probably not choose for the first verse of the love sequence a verse about the golden years, but all the other phases, it seems to me, offer adequate opportunity for writing the follow-on verse.

  92. an opened sesame
    seed packet
    from India
    .
    Betty Shropshire
    .
    together they sow
    dandelion dreams
    .
    girls have more fun
    at the poker game
    .
    his third leg becomes hers
    at the egg and spoon race
    .
    the sailor boy’s fish
    in a new port
    .
    his wildly sown oats leaving bumps
    all over town

      1. Now that’s so sweet, Robert, and if I may say could be a little suggestive. Nice.

  94. Thanks, Patricia and Everyone! Have more to say tomorrow… very long day moving. My radiation treatments were abruptly stopped yesterday as it was deemed to toxic to my other organs to continue. So. overall it’s a good thing…we got out of the big city. Just exhausted.
    Lorin, good question…
    Betty

    2. Yes, take care Betty, and hope you do catch-up when you are able to.
      .
      A very good question.

    3. Betty–I hope the retreat from the city gives you respite and restores your strength.

  96. Congrats Betty, on your verse. It intrigued me from the start but I wasn’t sure why. Thank you Patricia, for the explanation, and the mention.
    *
    bedside lamps
    light two books

  97. an opened sesame
    seed packet
    from India — Betty Shropshire
    .

    the young groom’s condom
    still only halfway on
    .

    1. lorin,
      i like this one, and how you are linking it!
      …
      regarding sesame seeds….
      i had the same thoughts…..but i wanted to wait…..so betty could soak up congrats before bringing it up.
      but since you have already….i will share my thoughts here as well:
      *
      sesame seeds….would be included in seeds and nuts in higg. 500 and listed under all autumn….but like sardines….they may need to be fresh, and maybe raw…..(maybe not roasted?????)
      *
      sesame seeds are sold raw and roasted in seed packets (both are dried) and come in black and and white (more like light beige) in the stores here where we shop.
      *
      halava….when i make it….is made by grinding them down to powdery paste when i add my other ingredients to it.

  99. Patricia, thank you for confirming the canned sardines issue.
    .
    That example was, I think , an extreme example of a word that doesn’t automatically evoke a season , but I also have this query :
    .
    When it comes to packaged goods like sesame seed (as differentiated from the sowing, flowering, harvesting, and processing of the seed and “new/ fresh/ sesame seed”) how can we know the season? Gabi Greve seems to have sesame seeds under early autumn, late autumn and mid-autumn on the same page :
    .
    https://indiasaijikiworlkhaiku.blogspot.com/2006/07/sesame.html
    .

    “Japan
    .

    sesame, goma　ゴマ、ごま、胡麻
    fresh sesame seeds, shin goma 新胡麻
    cutting sesame plants, goma karu　胡麻刈る
    …………. MORE
    Goma … Sesame KIGO in mid-Autumn
    .

    The ‘500 Essential Japanese…’ has a generalized “seeds of grasses & forbs” as ‘all autumn’.
    Haiku World has “nuts and seeds” as ‘all autumn’ (but the sample ku Higginson includes specifies “gathering nuts”)
    .
    But once we have a packaged product , imported (in this case) from India, do we still have a season?

    .

    1. Hi, Lorin– Interesting question. I don’t think of packaged seeds as being in the same category as canned sardines. The idea of canning sardines is to preserve them so that they can stay in your cupboard forever until you need them. The idea behind a packet of seeds is to use them while they are fresh, while they are viable. The most valued seeds are from the present year’s crop. Admittedly, a packet of seeds could be kept for years, but their potency dwindles over time so it is not really a recommended practice.

      1. Thanks for your response, Patricia. It is true that seeds (sesame, sunflower, etc.. . .) , nuts, flour and even pasta have use-by or “best by” dates on the package. . . I think it’s usually about one year. Like rice, other seeds, both grain-seeds and other, are of course best when first harvested and cleaned. They keep in good condition at least until their “best by” date, which is certainly not “forever” like canned goods.
        .
        Seeds intended for sowing/ planting also usually have a “use by” date of approximately a year, too.

  100. Congratulations, Betty! It’s a graceful, clever, and altogether lovely verse–just right!
    *
    floating ideas
    for a weekend away
    *
    getting as close as two
    N95s let them
    *
    offering a bouquet
    of nitrile gloves
    *

  101. Congratulations, Betty. 🙂 I like your wordplay and appreciate the humour of your use of the magical “open sesame” as it connects with those “autumn gates”.
    .

  102. the last two leaves
    on a dying tree
    ########
    hidden treasures, her Spanish
    love letters in the attic
    #########
    first loves
    steal your tricycle
    ########
    remember that day when
    me turned into we

  104. repost for clarity:

    &&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&

    an opened sesame
    seed packet
    from India
    .
    Betty Shropshire
    *
    a gift of marble halava
    for her sweet tooth
    *
    Patricia is halava accepted?

    1. Hi, Wendy–I’m not sure what your question is. Halava, a sweet made from sesame seeds, is a legitimate subject for a renku. The question in my mind, and maybe in yours, is is it too close a link. I’m thinking it is.

      1. thanks patricia,
        yes….that is what i wanted to know…..the linkability.
        thank you for your speedy answer.

        have a good friday and holiday…as best as… limitations permit.
        stay safe!

  106. &&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&

    an opened sesame
    seed packet
    from India
    .
    Betty Shropshire

    a gift of marble halava
    for her sweet tooth

    Patricia is halava accepted?

  107. an opened sesame
    seed packet
    from India
    .
    Betty Shropshire
    ..
    wild irises trained
    on the gifted wallflower

  108. offering her chewing gum
    for the possible first kiss
    ****
    expecting kissing
    he offers her a bubblegum

      1. Yes, thanks, Wendy! But is should be chronologically predictable after eating sesame seed!

        1. yes….i did picture this…. the gum as a prophylactic vacuum… cleanses the seeds!!!!!

  110. Thank you Patricia, for mentioning my verse and for guiding this renku journey. Your explanation of Betty’s verse was very enlightening for me. Well done Betty, what a great verse to take us forward! And thanks to all you poets, I look forward to your/our discussions every week:-)

  111. &&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&

    an opened sesame
    seed packet
    from India
    .
    Betty Shropshire
    .
    a forgetful caveman but
    a helluva kisser

      1. glad you like my humour, kanjini
        *
        LOL!!!!! did you mean two “i’s” in kanjini? LOL!!!!!!!

      2. seriously….kanjini….i do try to avoid duplication such as this….but here….nothing “sounds” better to me…..so i use my artistic license to lead the way. thank you for asking.

  112. Congrats Betty and thanks Patricia, I think I may finally be learning how to participate in a renku.
    ############
    her smiles and laughter
    cure the corona blues
    ###########
    her smiles and laughter
    make my sap rise
    ############
    and they lived happily
    ever after in fairy tales
    ##########
    turbulence causes hugs
    from beautiful strangers

    2. glad, dan…that you have the swing of things.
      i hold the belief….that the sky has no limits for your talent….your “content” has always moved me….it was just the “form” that needed change! learning kigo is an important and ongoing activity….as it is fliud….in my humble opinion.

      .
      as in corona blues……
      “blues”…….”musical”/”colour” reference… or just “mood” ??????????????
      Patricia…..can you tell me where do you stand on this?

      3. Ahh–this is a tough one–as you point out, on the surface it’s a mood, but it strongly alludes to music and it is unabashedly a color. We are one verse away from allowing music so if this verse was a blow-out link, I’d break the rules to choose it. But we are two verses away from allowing color so I think that makes it a no-go.

        1. thanks, patricia for your response here….that clarifies things so well for me!

  114. well done Betty
    and thanks for considering my offer, Patricia.
    Who knows, Persephone may reappear in a spring verse.

  115. Congrats Betty. And, thank you Patricia for acknowledging one of my efforts.

    an opened sesame
    seed packet
    from India
    .
    Betty Shropshire

    above the mask
    she promises with a long gaze

  116. Congratulations Betty.
    A nice selection Patricia.
    Thank you for forming up Lorin’s advice.

  119. an opened sesame
    seed packet
    from India
    .
    Betty Shropshire
    *
    arms wrap her waist
    in a heimlich maneuver

  120. Congrats Betty
    *****************
    lest we never forget
    love’s a four letter word

  121. Patricia….a wonder exciting, exotic twist for our renku!!!!!!
    .
    and thank you for all your detailed clarifications.
    .
    Congrats!!!!!!! Betty, i am so glad your exotic verse is reflected in this wonderful rendezvous renku
    &&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&

    an opened sesame
    seed packet
    from India
    .
    Betty Shropshire

  122. Very nicely done, Betty! And Patricia! I love it, though initially it zoomed right over my head😂. It brings to mind the checkered reports of Jack Ma/Alibaba’s donations of masks and test kits to other countries. Renku is such fun.

    Judt

  123. Congratulations and well done, Betty, a smashing verse. Will be interesting to see what develops and grows from your magical words.
    .
    Thankyou Patricia for considering one of my verses, appreciated.
    .
    Onward.

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