THF Monthly Kukai Voting Ballot — January 2025
This month’s theme:
indigo
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.
Note: Anonymity is an essential part of any kukai. If you know who wrote the poem then that entry is no longer anonymous. Please respect the Kukai and do not vote for that entry.
The Ballot
1 | 12-bar blues the indigo of winter | |
2 | 50 shades of indigo — ‘the grandeur of a royal court’ ‘the vastness of high seas’ | |
3 | a flash of blue in the blue sky — indigo bunting | |
4 | a scrap of sky in the underbrush indigo bunting | |
5 | a seamless stretch of indigo sky crescent moon | |
6 | a shard of light cuts the indigo sea — winter sunset | |
7 | a summer night turns indigo fingertips touch | |
8 | above his coffin a cold indigo sky for him it is blue | |
9 | above our home seamlessly nailed into a rainbow — the shade of jeans | |
10 | abused touch — she now sees red in all denim jeans | |
11 | after storm as if nothing happened the indigo again | |
12 | after the storm all the colors of the sea baby blue to indigo | |
13 | an indigo moon the void peeks through my emotions | |
14 | an indigo web catches my eye family capillaries | |
15 | An old silk scarf Got its fresh indigo tint Mom was glad | |
16 | another spring — I am no longer the same | |
17 | autumn clothesline the indigo wear drips into lighter shade | |
18 | backyard quiz an indigo bunting or a bluebird | |
19 | bad chemistry no indigo hue in my test tube | |
20 | beach combing at low tide “Mood Indigo” | |
21 | bees feeding at indigo-colored forget-me-nots | |
22 | beginning to let go the daily shivers indigo bunting’s chirp | |
23 | behind the gray sky a sunlit indigo patch defying winter | |
24 | beneath mum’s nails the ghost of indigo sky first frost | |
25 | beyond the stars the deep blue of space are we there yet | |
26 | birthday gift purple and blue hydrangeas sown with love | |
27 | black and white photo her indigo sweater | |
28 | blue bucket list found in the pocket of his jeans | |
29 | blue hour snow shovel heavy with sapphires | |
30 | blue indigo flowers violet | |
31 | blue jeans — a fraying seam between sea and sky | |
32 | Blue sunset becomes wings. Memories of purples Hidden in ripples. | |
33 | bluebird song at twilight decrescendo | |
34 | blues at sundown indigo sky | |
35 | Brewing jasmine tea Icy indigo sunset Belonging | |
36 | calming storm sister’s remaining names for indigo buntings | |
37 | captivating first glimpse of an indigo bunting | |
38 | cornflowers . . . the indigo of the sky in my garden | |
39 | crochet hooks on indigo scarf her lifeless hands . . . | |
40 | Crow wings — warming grandmother With her indigo wrap | |
41 | currawong calls the stars fading to indigo | |
42 | dark blue wave from the profound heart of memories | |
43 | dark night — indigo abandons the spectrum | |
44 | dark ward ultraviolet lights swaddle baby | |
45 | Darkest blue Thumb print on the moon, Earth’s shadow. | |
46 | day after new year’s someone’s pair of jeans blues the laundry | |
47 | day fades . . . sun sleeps winter spreads indigo nights snow stars sparkle | |
48 | dazzling indigo songbird hiding in thickets caring for its eggs | |
49 | deep sea cruise the indigo sound of lapping waves | |
50 | deep winter blues finding my new denims in the wash | |
51 | during that homeless June standing lunch date at noon me and the indigo bunting | |
52 | dye factory — the blue stains of young hands | |
53 | dyed indigo blue collars and jeans linked with labor | |
54 | early shift factory gate indigo horizon | |
55 | end of argument the indigo shades of her bruise | |
56 | faded jeans in the fishing villages people are grumpy | |
57 | finger painting . . . a heron’s indigo dabs the lagoon | |
58 | first day of monsoons an ostentation of peacocks strutting their blues | |
59 | first evening stars blue mood deepens into indigo | |
60 | forest cool — between sunbeams the crow turns blue | |
61 | forget-me-nots on a cold winter day indigo mittens | |
62 | giving the master a wet kiss a wet dog | |
63 | Grandfather’s dim eyes — Blazing fields of indigo. (The Indigo planters exploited workers and this led to the Indigo revolt of 1859 in India.) | |
64 | harmonious vibes at the end of day — indigo sky | |
65 | hatching near a frozen pond indigo shadows | |
66 | heat wave drawing attention to her bruise | |
67 | her eye neither blue nor purple new lockdown | |
68 | her smile among the stars crescent moon | |
69 | hitchhiking across the ocean humpback barnacles | |
70 | Hypnotically slow to bloom . . . the black pearl amaryllis . . . | |
71 | in unison with the sax player’s blue note indigo sky | |
72 | india natives dyed for europeans | |
73 | Indian blue gold bought freedom under slavery’s shadow | |
74 | indigo the color of insomnia | |
75 | indigo the deep blues of wildfires | |
76 | Indigo we call it blue jeans | |
77 | indigo — accepting all the colors of the rainbow | |
78 | indigo — remember the electric track of disco | |
79 | indigo — staining my shoe with blue sunshine | |
80 | indigo berries mama’s favourite before nightfall | |
81 | indigo bird on a family totem wing swept hope | |
82 | indigo child another way to label my fragility | |
83 | indigo child following the flight path of dandelions | |
84 | indigo dusk a splash of rainfall wobbles the moon | |
85 | indigo dusk our pregnancy test negative again | |
86 | indigo flame an alchemist’s breath reshapes the dark | |
87 | indigo lake the fisherman catches a kintsugi of rainbow | |
88 | indigo leaking from the moon — she sees colours everywhere | |
89 | Indigo magic Eyes light as joy dances in My heart stirred in hue | |
90 | indigo mood looking for the red sunset on the blue sky | |
91 | indigo mood till evening stars appear and spark my poetic fires | |
92 | Indigo moon sounds These unawakened sorrows Whispers of deep blue | |
93 | indigo napkin saved from our last meal make a mistake | |
94 | indigo paper cups with hot coffee along the white ski slope | |
95 | indigo sashiko stitching a new life into my old jeans | |
96 | indigo shrub extracting the cherished dye from blood | |
97 | indigo sky a pair of ringed plover won’t let me go | |
98 | indigo sky christmas wreath knocking on the door | |
99 | indigo sky his brush scatters tiny birds | |
100 | indigo sky its blueness soaks into us we go for a swim | |
101 | indigo sky the moon blossoms a passion flower | |
102 | indigo sky the saint focuses on chakras within | |
103 | indigo twilight on the deep lake birds set down | |
104 | indigo twilight spectral colours at a standstill | |
105 | indigo twilight the velvet shades of wisdom | |
106 | indigo veil the long memory of the Tuareg | |
107 | indigo water — my new pair of blue jeans at their first wash | |
108 | indigo waves stars bloom onto the lotus pond | |
109 | Indigo’s noble might Caresses the human soul, Sun’s balm is there — | |
110 | indigoing her thrift shop blouse a hippie peace sign | |
111 | iris bursting through the snow a splash of indigo and gold | |
112 | it’s Monday Music — a different riff today on Nursing Home Blues | |
113 | jazz nightclub . . . the vocalist croons “Mood Indigo” | |
114 | just enough to brighten gloomy days winter irises | |
115 | life in a metro slipping through my fingers indigo dreams | |
116 | lost in subway car weighed down by winter wardrobed — indigo scarf | |
117 | lost in the firestorm indigo sunrise | |
118 | Ludicrous this mind Blue doldrums, violet rush Mirror winks at me | |
119 | mapping the way home the night sky | |
120 | mixed feelings finding joy in indigo everyday rainbow | |
121 | modern man rather before death in search the lapis lazuli | |
122 | muted indygo — on the surface of the lake scattered stars | |
123 | my name is Indigo you spelled my name wrong prepare to die | |
124 | new kurta bleeds indigo onto my skin — farmer’s ancient curse | |
125 | New year, fresh birthday, already tangled up in last year’s indigo | |
126 | no spare pair of gloves I watch as you alone harvest indigo | |
127 | not even his brilliant indigo eyes were real | |
128 | ocean whisper disrupts meditation noisy seagall | |
129 | of the seven my favorite is indigo Roy G. Biv | |
130 | on indigo page of sky nailed Moon | |
131 | on Rehoboth beach giant waves fight for the shore roaring purplish blue | |
132 | once in a lifetime indigo bunting | |
133 | once in an indigo bunting | |
134 | outside morning window snow drapes indigo chairs | |
135 | passionflower all the proof I need | |
136 | periwinkle under an old oak — crumbled headstones | |
137 | quarrel’s over the lingering fragrance of her Indigo Dream | |
138 | quiet crawl over late summer indigo tipped black wings just my sigh | |
139 | quiet rain an indigo scarf left on the chair’s edge | |
140 | rainbow adorns the western sky a girlie prefers an indigo frock. | |
141 | rainbow in the sky against a blue background color of tranquility | |
142 | recipe stomping inio blue Chapped hands Cloth wringing tight Rhythm sing song for sorrows hue | |
143 | retirement day — tiny puddles of indigo in his shirt pocket | |
144 | round dance billowing yukata indigo and silvermoon | |
145 | samurai blue in the eye of the storm peace | |
146 | self-defence conversing with the indigo off and on | |
147 | she hides an indigo bruise, rainbowing after a blue | |
148 | Shouts and fireworks Turning pages behind voile Pale indigo rays | |
149 | skin rash patterns batik makers’ hands postcolonial sun | |
150 | snowdrift dawn walking an indigo road of winter shadows | |
151 | summer visit wild indigo hosts wild indigo duskywings | |
152 | sunset if I could paint this indigo silence | |
153 | table for one — the deepest blues just before sunset | |
154 | taking photos — the sky became again part of the lake | |
155 | taut to touch — stories of our labor indigo blues play | |
156 | that spine tingle — the sky in the distance bluer than blue | |
157 | the depth of a night sky in my thoughts her perfect indigo dress | |
158 | the heavens turned indigo the way they always do the night you died | |
159 | The I in BIV Forgotten as a favorite color Indigo still shines bright | |
160 | The sun drowns itself clouds cover the battle; dazzling indigo. | |
161 | the undersigned take it or leave it | |
162 | the world stripped to white skin the blue light of snow | |
163 | third eye of the cosmos confessing in a crocus | |
164 | threads of ‘indigo’ in the rainbow . . . grandma’s cross-stitch | |
165 | Today first winter sun Dark water reflects white clouds My needle paints on indigo cloth | |
166 | traveler’s talisman speedwell’s indigo flowers guide me home | |
167 | tropical twilight — indigo from India fresh on fingertips | |
168 | trying not to stare at the indigo crescent beneath her eye. | |
169 | twilit hill the city below nothing but fireflies | |
170 | when nothing else matters wild indigo | |
171 | wild indigo dancing butterflies get carried away | |
172 | wild indigo . . . an intimate space along roadsides | |
173 | windy harbor — the moonlight surfing indigo waves | |
174 | winter’s romance . . . new bruises showing through her threadbare denim | |
175 | wolf moon a rip in dark-washed jeans | |
176 | womb levitation in liquid twilight |
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!
