Paperbark Haiku Summer 2025 Ginko

AHS sincerely apologises for the delay in posting this report.

The Paperbark Haiku Group’s Summer gathering for 2025 was held on the morning of Wednesday December 10th. Twelve haiku enthusiasts gathered at the Little Rokeby Café in Subiaco to experience the nearby memorial gardens, and to set down lines of haiku in response to the environs.

This location was selected to allow participants to observe a ginkgo tree near the entrance to the Subiaco library. The poets noted the distinctive shape and texture of the leaves, as well as the cultural significance and remarkable longevity of the species. They then drew upon the tree and its surroundings for their notes and poems; these included the nearby schoolyard (full of ebullient children at recess), the stately norfolk pines, the memorial rose garden, the monument to fallen soldiers, and even the neighbouring offices and shopfronts. The haiku collected below demonstrate the diverse impressions, reflections, and imaginative explorations of the writers who took part.

war monument
chiselled names
ginkgo tree stands guard

		Daniel Dowsett

a wind-powered memorial
schoolchildren shout
pretty roses all in a row

		Mar Bucknell

ginkgo leaf
the flutter of a fan
falling

		Gary de Piazzi

bird of paradise
the orange and blue hues
of early summer

		Rose van Son

the green of your leaves
helps to save humanity
your hue is our strength

		Aileen Hawkes

leaves fan green
waving summertime breeze
ginkgo dancers

		Judith Ann

sacred ginkgo
I beg for
just one leaf

		Pat Johnson

rose garden memorial
digger's blood and bone

		Shae O’Reilly

ginkgo leaves
twitch on slender stems
flightless moths

		Glen Hunting

he admired my shirt
"Grumpy Old Man"
a good judge I thought

		Ruari Jack Hughes