12 September, 2024
Warm greetings once again as four of us met up, settled in and ordered lunch—Kathy Kituai, Hazel Hall, Glenys Ferguson and Jan Dobb. We thought of our other two haiku buddies who are away on travels—Greg Piko and Marietta McGregor.
The four of us were still feeling the afterglow of a recent joint book launch by Hazel and Kathy, a wonderful evening of celebrating poetry in its various forms. A Hint of Rosemary and The Art of Catching Jam Before It Burns, respectively, are both published by Interactive Press.
Hence, some considerable time was devoted to how poetry in general communicates a poet’s life-experience to the reader. This of course involves a certain amount of vulnerability and trust, and these two aspects were indeed present as our personal conversation progressed. Poetry opens the doors of relationship with each other.
Of course, haiku did manage to get a look-in too, and Jan sought a response to a few queries she has pondered lately about competitions. This led to a discussion from various perspectives, especially as Hazel and Kathy are old hands as judges too. We considered such queries as:
Why compete? What is the attraction?
Is competitiveness in keeping with the spirit of haiku?
How significant is attitude when entering a competition?
Ditto when judging a competition?
How significant is winning? Is it really the best? What is best?
By this time, we were alone among empty tables and the management had packed up, happy for us to stay on and to leave by a side entrance when ready. The ultimate hospitality!
Jan Dobb
Australian Haiku Society 