THF Monthly Kukai Voting Ballot — June 2025
This month’s theme:
wine
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 | a bottle of red wine on the anniversary table a wound from our old war | |
2 | a dry sound — clash between the floor and the wine bottle | |
3 | a glass of old wine and everyone lives his best life | |
4 | a glass of wine full of moonlight the solitude of the night | |
5 | a gulp of wine — two strangers become a tale told in candlelight | |
6 | a jug of red wine even the plainest of words turn into a song | |
7 | a last sip at the bottom of the bottle the truth lies | |
8 | a quiet night not even the moon is there to drink with me | |
9 | a sip of red wine with my(self) a night after divorce | |
10 | a spider slips in an empty wine bottle blackout | |
11 | a swallowtail hides its succulence in the intertwining wines | |
12 | after chess defeat bishop bows, whispers checkmate by the rim of wine | |
13 | aged for occasion forgotten in the cellar anniversary | |
14 | air turbulence — fortunately the wine sways in my glass | |
15 | alcohol he kids himself he writes better | |
16 | all his love letters in pieces empty wine bottles | |
17 | another cover-up . . . the aftertaste of the blood of Christ | |
18 | assorted bouquet balm for the soul on a white night | |
19 | autumn shadows — alone in the kitchen she pours wine | |
20 | autumn skies leaves falling slowly spinning drunk | |
21 | Bat on blue agave Night pollinator aghast Eschews tequila. | |
22 | blinding light cuddles the grapes — new wine | |
23 | bright red wine bright red lips — which first? | |
24 | broken wineglass — one small drop of red | |
25 | calla lily still swirling burgundy by the stem | |
26 | candle light through the wine glass lost dreams | |
27 | carpet stain uncorked slur of words | |
28 | Cells of winter strangled in an ancient wine-cork | |
29 | cherry blossoms in my glass — reflections | |
30 | cognac . . . maybe today he will ask | |
31 | communion triggered by the blood of the lamb | |
32 | cool overcast night and the shallow muffled waves on the wine dark sea | |
33 | Crimson glass of wine, Whispers echo through the dusk — Stars toast the still night. | |
34 | dark red in the glass, feeling of warmth, soft and slow, marches through the wine. | |
35 | darkling words in the claret of a tryst | |
36 | daughter’s wedding the subtle hints of mushrooms in my wine | |
37 | deep purple pinot the colour inside his glass the shade of her bruise | |
38 | dining alone old wine stains on the tablecloth | |
39 | Dinner time, Guest’s seated. Wine, dine. | |
40 | Dry January’s end A chilled Meursault still waiting Bless its pointed head | |
41 | dusty time — on the wine bottles traces of a spider | |
42 | empty bottle the glass fills with moonlight | |
43 | empty bottles evidence from last night today — wine haze | |
44 | end of summer — the grape hoards the sunset light | |
45 | evening routine wine and spooning on the porch | |
46 | evening swallows another version of her in the bottle | |
47 | facial flushing the free bottle of wine regifted | |
48 | falling the gravity of wine | |
49 | february 1st turning water into wine | |
50 | first love hummingbird wings flicker drunk on summer wine | |
51 | fishing stories it appears that fish also shoot wine | |
52 | foraged wild apples unfiltered and earthy autumn crisp | |
53 | Friday fire pit my wineglass restyled to a rare gem | |
54 | full bodied bordeaux fits into the tight ass flute’ glass half full | |
55 | full moon — the bottle of wine half empty | |
56 | funeral in town — the rice wine vendors sell more than other days | |
57 | gentle hold on the stem brief flick of the wrist swirling nectar . . . | |
58 | gentle rain even-tempered my wine cellar | |
59 | glass of wine planes above vineyards carry deportees | |
60 | Grapes on vines . . . hang time is fruits’ freedom bottled wine, a pretty prisoner | |
61 | Grapevines stretch as arms Holding green tendril spirals Clutching grapes as pearls for wine | |
62 | has aged well like dad . . . this red wine | |
63 | He overserved Her eye now a rancid Shade of wine | |
64 | he waltzes with a glamour girl — her salty wine | |
65 | heat wave . . . incy wincy in a blink Inniskillin Icewine | |
66 | her words in a glass of wine lose meaning | |
67 | high feast’s blest paschal wine, sacred blood flowing, His pierced crucified side | |
68 | his last visit a little wine leftover in the stemware | |
69 | holy wasting a cold sip of summer dandelion wine | |
70 | in love in zell in the autumn of their lives spätlese | |
71 | in remission turning water into wine | |
72 | in the wind a wildflower bouquet summer rosé | |
73 | journey to Burgundy with her oldest friends taste of the first crush | |
74 | Kyoto-bound — the Chablis drinker orders saki | |
75 | last night’s wine glass — drained but still pink | |
76 | light rain . . . foreign voices among the grapes | |
77 | lilies silent in the sacristy the whiff of cheap wine | |
78 | long abided kiss summer night tipsy with jasmine blooms wine soaked lips and dreams | |
79 | lumbago from his bartender years vine root walking stick | |
80 | madeira wine in the summer breeze her slip of the tongue | |
81 | mixing wine in the hydria — the truths come to the surface | |
82 | motel departure a wine stained bra left on a table | |
83 | mulled wine a sip of warmth after the tiff | |
84 | Musky shag carpet Molding from wine-dark stains Memory — fresh spill | |
85 | night sky pouring wine and there in my cup, the moon! | |
86 | no closure — Father’s wine glass stays awake all night | |
87 | no trace of what she went through sparkling wine | |
88 | october birthday in a stemmed glass aged enough | |
89 | offering another stumble spilled wine | |
90 | oh oh summer wine strumming my pain still with his fingers | |
91 | old Merlot I breathe in what I buried | |
92 | old wine bottle — this new touch of fingers | |
93 | on the spectrum all life’s vicissitudes the colors of wine | |
94 | only a few sips no matter how sweet the wine — hummer’s brief visit | |
95 | organ playing Bach silent people in black on the coffin a glass of wine | |
96 | overripe grapes split in the heat — a slammed door | |
97 | Perhaps being messy is my form of rebellion. Maybe that’s why I spilled the wine last night. But as it flowed towards the crisp and clean carpet, All I could feel was fright. I’ve lived my life spilled from my body Tremors have shaken me, tremors disguised as your love. Now I trembled as I suffocate when I look at you And all I can see in your eyes is disgust. Perhaps that’s why my fingers are stained with blue Cause all I saw with you was red And terror was the only reason why, I closed my eyes in the calm of the night, in my very own bed. I’ve been called beautifully growing all my life, By people who came up with bright smiles So I smiled back, failing to see the cage that confined me, A promise to hold me safe in captivity, till the end of my life. So I ran away, thinking distance would do the trick, Now I sit alone far from the shackles that I could finally see, Wondering why I still can’t breathe after so long, Finally feeling the shackles which still confine me. So I stir the glass of wine in my hand, Spilling it deliberately, cause I don’t have a reason to flinch every time I hear a noise. Wondering why I still look around when all I see is red And all I hear is my own thoughts but in your voice. | |
98 | Piemonte fog Tenderly kisses the vine Tasting notes of love | |
99 | plum skyline at the top of the hill mulled wine | |
100 | Pomegranate seeds. Staining crimson and scarlet. Like rubies or wine. | |
101 | Poppy Day . . . a veteran recommends a red wine | |
102 | port wine — sometimes a stain beyond laundering | |
103 | port wine stain birthmark the parts of me I hide from you | |
104 | pouring from the dippers . . . champagne dusk | |
105 | pouring over old photographs the clink of glasses | |
106 | promises you can’t keep . . . spilt wine | |
107 | purple wine staining our lips first kiss | |
108 | relaxing with Riesling — solstice stars | |
109 | ripe mulberries . . . after the waxwings the looped trail of purple corks | |
110 | roses on time clock cold snap cork lips red wine | |
111 | rush hour traffic a maga bumper sticker cuts me off | |
112 | Saki with the Cherry blossoms — the pink Keeps getting better.. | |
113 | Seasons’ grapes turn dark, A slow dance of years and oak — A glass of gold wine | |
114 | shattered bottle of wine scattered on floor careful path | |
115 | shyness . . . he encourages her with a glass of wine | |
116 | Sip it to be Sophisticated. Slurp it To be sozzled. | |
117 | Some glasses of wine — things which were once clear are seen in distorted view! | |
118 | sour grapes she knocks back another chardonnay | |
119 | sour wine, the poet’s sweet inspiration | |
120 | spilled Merlot my crimson lips forming an O | |
121 | spilled wine — sunset bleeds into white | |
122 | spring dry charm of dandelion wine | |
123 | such young grape leaves and we feel dizzy on our first walk | |
124 | sultry dusk . . . the wine even better from your lips | |
125 | summer moon berry nectar from the dollar store | |
126 | summer sangria she spills his secrets | |
127 | summer stars — late harvest on your lips | |
128 | summer wine a drunken bee in a stupor | |
129 | summer wine the day she made her own choice | |
130 | sweet pairings my evening ritual | |
131 | tart Cypriot wine — in the hands of an old man Gordian knot | |
132 | the familiar taste of communion wine college party | |
133 | the fly wines and dines me for supper | |
134 | the kiss of grape liquid skin and flesh on bruised lips | |
135 | The late evening sun Colours faces and drinks in Burgundy red hue | |
136 | the list . . . the cork; the swirl life-long friend | |
137 | the lower the price the higher the waiter’s nose wine list | |
138 | the smell aroma the aire of sweet wine | |
139 | the white of her eyes more pinot grigio | |
140 | toasting and sipping sweet wine in grandpa’s vineyard — his funeral request | |
141 | too much wine a fly in the folds of a scented rose | |
142 | Trying not to pucker at the taste first Communion wine | |
143 | twilight changing water into wine | |
144 | two bottles of wine ago dinner wasn’t burnt | |
145 | two glasses of wine on the table shrivelled night | |
146 | two hearts one language red wine | |
147 | up from the cellar last year’s wine fills summer’s glass old wine in new skins | |
148 | Valentine’s day . . . the red wine deepens her lipstick | |
149 | veery call uncorking a bottle of summer | |
150 | Vineyard — Soft rose blush Of ripe grapes. | |
151 | vineyard tour . . . too much information and not enough wine | |
152 | vintage wine the fruity taste of my birth year | |
153 | wandering in the vineyard waiting | |
154 | watching White Lotus empty lives her glass falls stain won’t come out | |
155 | we take turns pouring . . . dawn breaks on empty bottles and enlightened minds | |
156 | wedding day she allows me to open a red wine bottle | |
157 | weddings at the winery bearing fruit | |
158 | weekly wine order my sanity relieved by you tortured willow | |
159 | wine . . . my first hangover ever mom did it | |
160 | Wine country sublime notes of darkness and light sand clay silt and sky | |
161 | wine dances within manic haze consumes the brain a gentle red kills | |
162 | wine drinker — grapes and wine as much he wants | |
163 | wine flight for two after the unspoken truths drowned fruit flies | |
164 | wine innocent screw top on the table | |
165 | Wine soaked pears The lazy litany Of fragile days | |
166 | wine stain — eyes avert from her birthmark | |
167 | wine tasting bluegrass mingles with merlot notes | |
168 | wine tasting the resident cat’s silky finish | |
169 | wine time pacing ourselves until happy hour | |
170 | Wino passed out in park | |
171 | winter kills my longing with wine | |
172 | winter accords — a swirl of the sugar plum fairy | |
173 | winter moon more than enough warmth in a mug of mulled wine | |
174 | With every next glass As evening turns into night Trues proof to be lies | |
175 | words found in a drawer refined like wine with a deeper note | |
176 | Wrote this haiku While under the influence Red, red wineeee | |
177 | your favorite wine makes its way into my basket old habits die hard |
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!
