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

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