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THF Monthly Kukai Voting Ballot May 2020

This month’s theme:
sheltering

Note: Due to popular demand, our kukai requirements have changed. Please see instructions below.

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 favorites poems at this time. All votes must be sent via The Haiku Foundation’s dedicated kukai email address using the subject line KUKAI VOTING. No other votes will be recognized or honored. All votes must be signed (that is, no “anonymous” votes will be accepted), 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.

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. Your voting email to us should look something like this:

First Choice (5 points): [your selection number here] Second Choice (4 points): [your selection number here] Third Choice (3 points): [your selection number here] Fourth Choice (2 points): [your selection number here] Fifth Choice (1 point): [your selection number here]

YOUR NAME

The Ballot

1A bird and a tree.
Use the bird to reach the tree
and sing on a branch
2a chair
in the shade of the walnut –
summer breeze
3a dry leaf
brushes her cheek
she shields herself with both arms
4active shooter
I pray he doesn’t find
my hiding spot
5adopted child
in a bowl with soup
swallows tears
6animal shelter
all the dogs
now have homes.
7animal shelter
the black kitten
chooses us
8animal shelter
the old dog wears
his love me face
9asleep in my lap
the cat she brought home
from the shelter
10at the busstop
always the two girls
in bikini
11at the pet store
a leash and a bowl
for her new companion
12at the unhealthy’s bedside
anew sounds
ancient master’s haiku
13bedtime
the imprint of moonlight
beyond the blind
14Being shut indoors,
the mind wanders where feet can’t.
Missing the pavement.
15beneath the sun
my hand.  my hat
my . . .
16between her grey eyes she shelters the present
17birthday afternoon
bubbles settling, silently
in the glass
18bloomed peony –
she shelters the homeless
during a pandemic
19border firing
he throws himself
on the puppy
20box turtles
the luxury of owning
their own
21candle flame
her world
in a dandelion globe
22cemetery
every cross is giving shade
to another leaf of grass
23chicks peepin
under the hen –
rain pitter patters
24circle of life
a breakfast in bed
for my mother
25city lockdown
mice make godown
their holiday destination
26clear sky
on the balcony a child
sings swearwords
27cloud cover we huddle as jam sandwiches piping hot tea
28cocoon
my self
in me
29comforted
by your solid presence –
chestnut oak
30corona blues
my home is my castle
and my prison
31Crashes of thunder
Your hand touching mine
Sheltering
32dancing in the dark
like no one is watching
with myself
33dandelion down . . .
camouflaged goslings
on the grass
34deep in the ivy
the gentle blue
of a robin’s egg
35deer on a cave wall
still running
on my desktop
36dinner alone
I digested
a few spring poems
37Dry despite the drizzle.
Chicks,
under their mother’s wing.
38Eldorado’s dream –
in the darkness of the abyss
the peaceful shelter
39evening walk. . .
dark valley of May apples
a white blossom under each
40evicting members
of our quaranteam
house ants
41first raindrops –
the bee in a trumpet flower
doesn’t know yet
42flower moon
the kids have gone camping
in the back yard
43funeral rain. . .
  a bee enters
     a balsam flower
44Gazing out
Sunshine kissing leaves
Unsheltered
45glueing a crack
in the birdhouse
wabi-sabi
46green calm …
among blades of grass
rose chafer
47grounded –
in a flannel sleeping bag
watching stars
48Hamelin’s curse – a swing
In a silent playground rocks
On a sunny day
49his man’s shed
a lone crow offers
its rasp
50homeless youth
in the church basement –
beached driftwood
51how heavy it feels
to wait for deliveries again –
modern grit
52                                                              hydrangea
                                                              not a single petal
                                                              of yesterday
53I  leeward of the roaring pine  remove to seek a quiet rain
54I look within
Sheltering from storms
That lie inside
55in a swift flash,
at our mid-feast –
the blue heron
56in dappled light
beneath the old white pine
a seedling
57just a leaf –
one night shelter
for two beetles
58keenly watching
when the turtle
takes out its neck
59late autumn
a man holds an umbrella
over his old dog
60late spring –
under a tattered wing
a baby sparrow
61leaf fort
raked away by a storm    a boy
sheds childhood
62lonely clang
empty rope against flagpole
deserted school
63Look under the eaves
Chickadee sits on her nest
As the rain pours down
64looking for shelter
in mom’s voice –
pandemia crisis
65love affair –
all of our excuses
quarantined
66low tide
in my footprint
a little crab
67May frost
peonies
sealed tight
68migrant workers . . .
an open earth
no room to stay
69moonlight searches
my worried face
i can’t sleep
70Mother hen.
Holding them close.
Two wet leaves.
71mourning their son
from the shelter of their car
funeral day
72my grandson snuggles
in his mommy’s tummy
sheltered in place
73my inner drag queen
pops to the surface
too much time alone
74my neighbor says
so much through a closed window
pink geranium
75night sirens . . .
far away a home
under prairie stars
76no park access
only the galaxy
this tiny terrace
77not alone anymore
a songbird sheltering
under my roof
78not sheltering
from Covid-19
new buds
79nowhere to go
sitting
with the moon
80old age home
every room
has a family photo
81on ledge of old tower
pigeon settles down – –
for tonight
82      outside raining
sparrow’s  beak into her back
warmth of chick
83overgrown by weeds
the buddha statue
loses its self
84persistent oriole
taps at the window
of my cage
85Peter Rabbit
hiding under a lettuce leaf
green masks
86play house –
the little girl cuddled up
with her doll
87Provide sheltering
From rains of pain, floods of gloom
With a warm embrace
88refuge in audacity
from the hole in the wall
the mouse sends me on
89roofline – – – –
 an old pine
   shelters in place
90safely
inside
still
the rain
91sanctuary
under an old oak
the sound of a snail
92screaming winds
tearing the yard apart,
in the birdhouse
two sorrowful pearls
93self isolating alone
tiring of my companion
94self-isolation
watching wasps build a nest
on the balcony
95shelter in place
all day every day
the phoebes
96shelter in place
wine bottles piling up
in the recycle bin
97sheltering
in blended colours
my ethnicity
98sheltering in place
days stretch into months

limes ripen on the tree
99

sheltering
somewhere between
science and shut up
in the dictionary

100shielding him
safeguarding our future
together
101solitary bat
leathers the moon to its heart
empty branch at dawn
102solo stroll
in summer grass
the youngest quail
103sparrow
near its nest
chirps
104spring cleaning
her letters in the attic
long forgotten
105spring dusk
a child’s diary takes in
stray cherry petals
106spring snow –
huddled in the porch eaves,
a sparrow
107squatting under a tree
its canopy a colander
the rain leaks slowly
108stars, porchlights for fallen angels
109stay at home order –
beneath the maple a mob
of maple seedlings
110staycation –
kayaking the twists and turns
of ceiling cracks
111staying safe –
I shelter within
the fortress of your arms
112stuck at home
imaginary friends
crowding in
113sunbeams . . .
the spider returns
on a thin thread
114the landlord
won’t fix the leak
hillside wisteria
115The rising morning
By a foggy pier –
My return home
116the silence of silence
his shade between wall stones
filling the emptiness
117the tiny umbrella their eyes met over
118the warming shelter
of his hands cradling my face
instead of this mask
119things I keep
in my safe place –
a cricket’s song
120through the window
her sparkling necklace shares a deeper message
. . . mother’s day
121traffic storm
a bird seeks cover
in my car
122treehouse fort
brown sugar sandwiches
and lilac blossoms
123unseasonal rain
waiting in the bus shelter
the tomcat and me
124weight of the leaden sky
I share the shelter
with a mourning dove
125wet the spring wind –
back to the past
under a shaded shelter
126where shadows
crouch inside shadows . . .
migrant shelter

 

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!

 

This Post Has 2 Comments

  1. I am wondering why my haiku has not been listed here like it wasn’t in the the last month

    eyes indrawn, peaceful
    sparrow hatches in ventilator-
    safe nest, straw-cool

Comments are closed.

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