January & February 2020
Vol V No I
Not your ordinary poetry magazine!
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Published bi-monthly
Haiku
with Kevin McLaughlin
Everyman’s Poetry
Obey the nature of things and walk freely and undisturbed. This is the manner in which a haiku writer seeks to pass their day. In its three lines, the simplest and the most profound elements of life mingle seamlessly. The trait of ripened mindfulness makes it possible to be Awake throughout the day and, for some, even in their dreams. Be mindful and the ability to perceive the thing-in-itself, and to express it, flows like a peaceful river. The haikuist is pointing a Zen finger at the moon. Pause. Empty the mind of distracting thoughts and afflictive emotions. There are ten thousand haiku to be enjoyed and written. Commonly associated with Buddhism, it is a form that adapts readily to any religious, aesthetic, or philosophical tradition. In the modern era, most verse is purely secular.
Haiku is an Everyman’s poetry. Special literary skills are not needed. You don’t have to master complex scanning and rhyming patterns. The form is straightforward and brief. The language can be drawn from one’s working vocabulary. Children in grammar school can understand the concept and produce excellent verse. “Beginner’s Mind” works naturally with this simple form. With Beginner’s Mind all truths in the Universe may be realized.
The gopher tortoise,
Disappears down its burrow:
Woodpecker screeches.
Kevin McLaughlin
Nishant Verma, from Mumbai, India, is an assistant scriptwriter. She enjoys reading Basho, Issa, and Shiki. Their influence on her work is evident.
Jewels from the sky
Omnipresent but unseen —
Crocus’ maiden bloom.
The sighs of our love
Travel on the Autumn wind —
Through brazen meadow
Raindrops in the lake.
Gay chaos amidst its dwellers —
Heron’s confusion
Whitecaps afar
The pebbles’ endless longing —
An empty levee
Staleness in the air
The walls, bruised and blemished —
July’s guilt profound
The withered earth
Children’s quick and restive feet —
Shishi-odoshi
Nishant Verma
Hifsa Ashraf lives in Pakistan where she publishes an international on-line journal. This poet reaches the deepest parts of our sensibilities. It is impossible not to be moved by her haiku.
evening chill —
a homeless child cuddles
the old teddy bear
refugee camp . . .
the cricket chirps
in the broken vessel
(Absolutely powerful and haunting.)
broken walkie talkie —
a refugee child dials
the emergency number
threadbare blanket
the cold wind weaves
through the bones
pellet gun shooting
a homeless child connects
the red spots
Hifsa Ashraf
Yet once more I encourage all haiku writers to share their work, their insights into the nature of all things, with fellow poets and BTS readers.
For those interested in haiku, I recommend you cast back into the BTS archives and reference the September 2016 column. It provides a pretty thorough explanation of the basic format.
- Kevin Mclaughlin
Pravat Kumar Padhy from Odisha, India, holds a Master’s degree in Science and Technology, and a PhD from the Dhanbad India Institute of Technology. It is encouraging to come across scientifically oriented people who participate in the Arts.
milky moon—
basaltic rocks
and craters
floating lotus—
the moon retains its color
behind dense clouds
twilight sky—
the faint sunlight slides
from the trees
starry night
owl gazes with
twin moons
moon night
the cowshed floor
turns milky
dark moon
I become a
distant star
(This haiku can induce a higher state of consciousness.)
Pravat Kumar Padhy
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Harris Coverley lives in Manchester, England. His first verse has a rare ethereal/philosophical quality; read this one carefully.
the cherry blossoms
flow like blood at the roadside
awaiting meaning
(An existential haiku that Jean-Paul Sartre would have savored.)
a streak of sunset
the day is getting longer
but that chill remains
the sky hangs heavy
saw a face in the flowers
something in the rain
Harris Coverley
Aliyah Janay understands how to take that pause and relate the beauty of this overt world objectively.
We all want to smell
the sweet roses in our path
designed just for us.
I never mentioned
that I collect your words like
dust on my nightstand.
The scent of summer
and pollinated flowers
are so kind to me
(Especially noteworthy is that these flowers have been pollinated and are participating in the chain of life.)
Aliyah Janay Jackson
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Barbara Shapiro has submitted an intriguing haiku. The piece contains three powerful, disparate images that are packed together more tightly than an H2O molecule. We look forward to her further work.
Lions heated
snakes flood basement
mourning doves storm sky
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Barbara Shapiro
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Richard Stevenson, a Canadian, lived for two years in Maiduguri, Nigeria, in the early 1980s. For 30 years, he taught at Lethbridge College, retiring in 2015. He has published 32 books and has recently had several others accepted.
dash me ten kobo, sah
beggar’s bowl becomes helmet
when I decline.
thieves again—
dog under the bureau
in a puddle of piss.
call to prayer—
great way to wake up
songbirds can’t compete
frightening beetle—
screams when you try to
move it with a broom.
Richard Stevenson
Teresa McLamb Blackmon is a retired English teacher who enjoys spending time on her farm with her animals. She graduated NCSU with an MA in English. Just recently Teresa turned her pen to haiku and produced these charming pieces.
Turtles sun today,
safe on sturdy rocks
while pond water ripples.
Little rabbits race
across my path toward home
finding their quick way.
Canada geese land
on slow water, sweeping fast
like skis on Sunday.
Donkeys and one goat
befriend the wild calico,
share the pasture so kindly.
Innocent deer stand
grazing until car lights spot
graceful leaps in air.
Puppy breath sweetens
every night’s sleep then wakes me
warm and satisfied.
Teresa McLamb Blackmon
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Paweł Markiewicz has written a series of haiku with the common thread of geese. They are discrete poems, not stanzas. He also contributes sensitive poems that evoke a sense of loneliness.
geese over village
eternal law of nature
has come true indeed
the flock of wild geese
springtide like philosophy
from the morning star
(This piece put me in mind of Shakyamuni Buddha meditating through the night, Enlightened when he sees the Morning Star.)
the lonely goose
separated in me
undivided dream
summer and the sky
lonely hawk is circling
destiny of beings
frost outside window
the crow sitting on a cable
electric and black
city in winter
the dreamy loneliness
of me and raven
Paweł Markiewicz
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Joseph Davidson practices compassion and cultivates inner peace. His ability to “live in the moment” characterizes his haiku.
Lone branch among weeds,
Magical display of light—
Black snake slithers off.
Rivers within sky,
Currents flow horizon’s shore—
Kite dances happy.
Roadside crows feasting
Urban bunny lost to car:
Pine beetle claims tree.
Joseph Davidson
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Angie Davidson provides the reader with classic haiku that consistently enhance our vision of the natural world.
Array of colors,
Wings gently glide on the wind:
Dragonfly arises.
Ibis watch for prey
Probing pond for crustaceans
Egrets walk behind.
Angela Davidson
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Ted Millar teaches English at the Mahopac High School in New York’s Hudson Valley. He frequently draws inspiration from personal experiences and nature. There is a refreshing playful quality to some of these haiku.
Cupcakes are muffins
that believed in miracles.
It didn’t end well.
(Haiku did originate as “play verse.”)
Tractor in a field,
barren save for deer grazing.
Is that coyote?
Look at the cardinals
perched upon that winter tree.
Four cardinals. Nope—three.
The rain stopped today
after three days of deluge.
Someone build an ark!
Ted Millar
Editor’s note: Please do not send in titles with your haiku. Titles add a fourth line to the poem, and frequently explain the verse. That should be left to the reader.
Kevin McLaughlin