1st Place
hard to read
Mum’s cursive loops
her last wishes
Jane Williams
This is a powerful haiku on so many levels and I’m sure there is more to this story than we will ever know. But like all good haiku, we can bring our own thoughts and memories to what is presented here. With a few well-chosen words, so much is evoked and the strong linking to the writing equipment brings this haiga to another level. The stunning use of the wording of cursive loops and the difficulty in reading, or perhaps knowing another, generates momentum that ends with the uncertainty of her last wishes. What’s written in ink, stays in ink, and our deep connections to each other are always a bittersweet mystery.
2nd Place
clearing fog
loose leaves in grandma’s
memory book
Polona Oblak
Memories and fog have such a powerful connection and we also have the loose leaves to contemplate another story of family. What is written in a memory book can hold the passage of time but what of the loose leaves and the teaching of impermanence. Once again the haiku connects strongly with the image without illustrating what is there but creating a link and shift to another place and time.
Highly Commended
scarlet or indigo?
today, there’s no need
to shout
Greg Piko
A fun moment here in the tradition of a senryu where the poet seems to be making a comparison between the modern use of capital letters to SHOUT or force a word, and using good old red ink scribed on an old ledger. This was often done with old convict records to highlight something and the tradition has carried over to the modern era but has become lost in a world of texting and email.
Highly Commended
midnight…
the many ways my poems
are born
Pris Campbell
A lovely moment to ponder and appreciate and think about the many ways our creative spirit is with us. The poet’s dark ink-like midnight connects well with the image, and that of a new day, with a new poem to follow. We never know when our muse will visit us, and when it might leave which gives us all the more reason to make it welcome. Perhaps over a nice cup of tea.
Highly Commended
war-time love letters…
his eyebrows on
my grandson’s face
Nathalie Buckland
A lovely haiku that captures the span of generations and how our lives are so deeply entwined with those who have gone before. This haiku blends well with the image and gives us the scope to remember our own physical attributes that come from close and distant loves. The days of letter writing with pen and ink seem to be fading as we move into an increasing digital age. This passage of time has always been so beautifully captured with these great tools and the skills that come with it – long may it continue.
Australian Haiku Society 