THF Monthly Kukai Voting Ballot — April 2021
This month’s theme:
trust
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 dog’s Zen moment chasing its tail in circles no future, no past | |
2 | a fledgling owl with wings outstretched the river below | |
3 | a gospel ghost in the needle — second dose | |
4 | a nod and wink assured the child everything would be okay | |
5 | A shared secret — I trust mother to forget. | |
6 | a sunny evening — in the TV weather forecast it’s already raining | |
7 | all night party remembering myself at her age | |
8 | always a sound night’s sleep my Father’s house | |
9 | Alzheimer — the intact memory of his iPad | |
10 | ambling along through thistled pathway shudder less will | |
11 | assaulting waves — still strong the bond of rock and mussel | |
12 | at eye level suggesting a refill hummingbird | |
13 | autumn dusk an old friend’s hand in mine | |
14 | baby sitting toddler plays with pet dog’s tail | |
15 | bees in the hive . . . the sweet taste of divine trust | |
16 | best friends a marriage pact between bells | |
17 | Bill’s snowdrops Why am I so hot I take my sunhat off The full moon | |
18 | branches bend by unhesitating squirrels | |
19 | busy road she grabs my hand tight with tiny fingers | |
20 | cherry blossoms God still trusts in us | |
21 | Clever warm brown eyes Focused upon his Manga Need not turn toward me | |
22 | cloudy day the sunflowers see the concealed Sun | |
23 | crossroads — I follow the dandelion | |
24 | day after day black-eyed susans following the sun | |
25 | day moon just beyond reach my instinct | |
26 | departing geese the promise I make to a child | |
27 | digging as pear petals blow I’m fine with dying | |
28 | divorced . . . unwillingly I accept a text from an unacquainted divorcee | |
29 | draupadi’s cheerharan — lord krishna came to rescue during mahabharatha’s dice game | |
30 | drifting snow another white-knuckled driving lesson | |
31 | earthquake — my trust in Earth is shaken | |
32 | elusive — a vaquita a corpse flower | |
33 | Falling to the ground I can trust you to catch me But would I catch you | |
34 | firing landing retrorockets our home on Mars | |
35 | first litter the Alsatian allows a child in her kennel | |
36 | first sprouts . . . newborn son clings to mom’s finger | |
37 | first step . . . leaving my home I make my own | |
38 | fledgling leaps from safety of nest — planting spring bulbs | |
39 | Flipping through pages glasses rest on the closed book old chapter opens | |
40 | floral dress a butterfly lingers on embroidery | |
41 | free-flying confidence deceptive silken threads | |
42 | frozen pond . . . we skirt the edges hand in hand | |
43 | green light — a toddler reaches for Mother’s hand | |
44 | gust the rope tightens in the escort runner’s hand | |
45 | hailstorm a snowdrift puts a crocus in its pocket | |
46 | he transfers the funds | |
47 | healing broken stars old friends | |
48 | heavy clouds — still that warm hand in silence | |
49 | her blue eyes assign the direction of my heart trust in the spring day | |
50 | her giggles falling from the sky into daddy’s hands | |
51 | high tide — my mother’s grip tightens around my wrist | |
52 | holding her gaze hand on baby’s head — she whispers push | |
53 | home haircut an inch too short trust falls | |
54 | irresistible the one eyed stray accepts salmon sashimi | |
55 | It was the same weed But now I see the flower Was it there last spring? | |
56 | learning to trust the homeless mother lets me rescue her pups | |
57 | led by a shadow sun’s got my back | |
58 | lifelong love my trust runs in your name | |
59 | long-lost trail following a robin’s hops my lighter shadow | |
60 | looking at me looking at him mouse and i | |
61 | looking forward to my daily walks a service dog | |
62 | lotus pond . . . a pair of mallards take turns sleeping | |
63 | love and trust . . . grandpa and grandson holding hands | |
64 | lowering his head a stray dog comforts the homeless man | |
65 | masked up she enters market | |
66 | midair manoeuvre his catcher’s hands reaching | |
67 | morning coffee . . . every raindrop another story | |
68 | mother’s push the fledgling discovers its wings | |
69 | my dog doesn’t care about Trump lying in the grass belly up for rubbing | |
70 | new neighbors all day by the fence our dogs | |
71 | night star — each night no-one’s cat nearer the door | |
72 | no secrets — deep night dreams between us | |
73 | north star crossing the Med a rubber dinghy | |
74 | on my darkest night searching the sky Pegasus | |
75 | one arm two vaccine jabs — all in | |
76 | one leg out of bed the other under cover her lawyer’s letter | |
77 | orange tabby cat arches and rubs against car’s wheel | |
78 | origami plane — my grandson sends a letter to god | |
79 | orphanage — their hands in my hands | |
80 | Parent’s strong arms cradle young life, infant smiles and gurgles. | |
81 | photos together in the family bible Trust papers | |
82 | plans for future I see a row of dots in every full stop | |
83 | playing with dawn ice I leap back | |
84 | prenup only the moon’s assets in her name | |
85 | pruned dogwood leaving our new house before spring | |
86 | rainbow blossoms the sun a proud cherry tree trading my umbrella for a smile | |
87 | refusing lift the old lady says she doesn’t trust female drivers | |
88 | remote road a dog convinced they’ll be back | |
89 | ripples . . . she reads the wind to her goslings | |
90 | roadside flower shop a butterfly flits in and return | |
91 | roadside pumpkin heap no seller lonesome cashbox cracker-barrel trust | |
92 | rush hour trusting no one | |
93 | rushing to my outstretched hands my kid’s first steps | |
94 | school assembly singing with the children we shall overcome | |
95 | selfie I see my mother’s face looking at me | |
96 | sharing a bed the dog walks in my sleep | |
97 | shortened distance between a sparrow and me . . . breadcrumbs | |
98 | sky of no moon — following a butterfly into the bamboo | |
99 | slatted sunlight my turn to spoon feed Mummy | |
100 | sofa cruising her studious pause before she takes my finger | |
101 | spring breeze — two flowers hold hands in my drawing | |
102 | spring everything is growing so are the bellies | |
103 | squirrels running on the very power line of trust | |
104 | still cold first cracks appear in brown buds | |
105 | still wet rocks don’t know the tide has turned | |
106 | the doctor’s face when she hands over her barely breathing newborn | |
107 | The Prime minister Whimpers and stammers out loud Would I lie to you??? | |
108 | the skylark singing over the heath — unbroken promise | |
109 | the trust from my cat’s eyes euthanasia | |
110 | the way mom is always there for me — day moon | |
111 | the weather forecast — should I wear my brand new kilt ‘military style’? | |
112 | they too must trust the stars . . . migrating geese | |
113 | this finger that carries a butterfly that carries the wind | |
114 | this smell — all sleep and milk the baby’s crown against my cheek | |
115 | Thrill of first love though wrinkled and grey of hair. Trust given freely. | |
116 | thunderstorm his selfie with a blue-eyed lass | |
117 | time after time . . . held by its sepals the tulip’s heart | |
118 | training wheels off Dad runs to keep close behind | |
119 | trust . . . a dovetail of tenon and mortise | |
120 | trust fall — a draft catches the fledgling | |
121 | Trust in secrecy Heightened awareness of peace Future guaranteed | |
122 | trust in the romance my empty diary | |
123 | Trust the God alone Highly unpredictable Mortal beings . . . | |
124 | trusting in herself without him . . . things that she can do | |
125 | tying a knot — I hand myself to him | |
126 | unleashed — now only trust tethers the falcon | |
127 | vanishing wetlands . . . the misplaced trust of migrant birds | |
128 | village train station an honesty box invites you to settle your fare | |
129 | volcano CRACK! microbes dancing dancing | |
130 | waiting for an owl to return my hoot | |
131 | waiting for the tide to drop a drop the oysters | |
132 | waning gibbous moon I trust the doctors to save the right lung | |
133 | watering plants hidden behind the vase a kitten mews | |
134 | wet stone good at being next to the snail | |
135 | when my mind goes blank you will know what to do he told her in love | |
136 | who should we trust now how to begin to know best she speaks, look within | |
137 | winding path moonless night but the light of temple lanterns | |
138 | your words genuine piercing my anxious layers burrowed in my heart |
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!
