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Never would I have thought I would start writing at 73 years of age. I have thoroughly enjoyed my voyage into the written spirituality of poetry and am thankful for the opportunity. In my seven years here I have met many new and wonderful persons. Having them accept me as a friend has been a moving experience.

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More notes on haiku and season words

Blog Posted by Charles Henderson: 10/30/2011 11:59:00 PM

The definition of a haiku is and has been three lines of poetry. Two lines which form a phrase and one line which is a fragment (the subject). The fragment can go above the phrase or below it but never between. The two lines of the phrase have to link grammatically and conceptually to each other and be related in some way to the fragment, either directly or opposing, but in a way to recognize a shift from a sensory perception in the first part of the poem to another in the second part.

when haiku was first written by the masters, the masses who followed wrote as the masters wrote, which was primarily about nature. Over the centuries man has slowly crept into the form. First it was the nature of man and even later has become the everyday man. Even now it is progressing into the gadgets of man, like refrigerators, auto, and computers.  Some of my poem you see will be of this type. I still prefer nature of nature best. It makes for much more beautiful flowing scenery, my opinion. I was specific in my contest so it would give me a chance to be more fair in my judging. The more poems that are about the same subject the easier for me to say which one is better or worse.

Below you will find some sample of season words if your idea of them is autumn, july or that sort of thing. I remarked to a poet earlier tonight that it is much easier to go to the Kigo Almanac first and pick out a season word to write a poem around,than to write the poem first and try to find a season word for it. Season words follow:

ant (all summer) amorous cat (early spring) american robin (all spring) awaited one (Love --all year) bamboo cry (all winter)   baseball (all summer)     blooming cherry (mid late spring)     cherry blossoms (mid late spring)     bugs come out (mid spring)     butterfly (all spring)     changing clothes (early summer)     chestnut (late autumn)     child (all year)
driftwood (all year)     dog (all year)      evening cicada(early autumn)     evening glows (late summer)     falling leaves (all winter)         falling red leaves (early winter)
first winter shower (early winter)          grave (all year)          hens eggs (all year)
kite festival (all spring)         long sleep (all year)       moolit night (autumn)
philandering cat (early spring)         pine cricket (early autumn)
red star lily (late summer)      star lit night (all autumn)        thunder head (all summer)
wild goose (late autumn)  withered pampas (all winter) young-leaf breeze (early summer)

If you haven't done your poem yet, or want to change your word, you are welcome to use any of these season words. I just wanted to show the variety of some and the practicality of others. Making up a word is a last resort and I really do not know how kosher it is to do that. Of course you really do not want to make up your own as long as you have a souce of established words you may use, such as a kigo almanac or "world kigo database" on line. (WKD)

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Kabuteng P.Ink
K.

Date: 10/31/2011 12:20:00 PM

Thanks for sharing these info, Charles-- I better save them or something-- I honestly want to try out your haiku contest once I sit down on it... I'm a bit intrigued as to how I will fair in it...

Carol Sunshine
Brown

Date: 10/31/2011 12:17:00 PM

Thank you I very much appreciate your return comment with explanation. Love, Carol

Carolyn
Devonshire

Date: 10/31/2011 10:28:00 AM

This is all very informative, Charles. Thank you for sharing your research with us. I like the seasonal words you found. Of course, in FL we can have thunder heads all year long. Still, I'm learning and I see the pattern. Love, Carolyn

Jack
Horne

Date: 10/31/2011 10:22:00 AM

Haiku is certainly more complicated than I ever imagined, but I'm enjoying learning it. The really confusing thing is that everyone using all those set words would be dismissed as cliches with other poetry forms

Carol Sunshine
Brown

Date: 10/31/2011 4:55:00 AM

So complicated. I try to fathom the poet who first wrote a Haiku. Sitting there with thoughts he wanted to write down on paper. He says no I can't write it this way because years from now poets are going to be seeing it their way and my way will be wrong. I need to write it to please them not myself. I know it is your contest and you have the right to have it done your way Charles not putting you down just putting down what is in my head right now. I often wonder about the poets of long ago and what they would think about what they have written and the way people take their writing and say this is what they were trying to do. I wasn't there at the time so I have no idea. There is no one today that was there then so, it is only their opinion what was in the poets mind. As with us when we write others can take the poems so many different ways. Okay I am rambling now. I best have some breakfast and think about something else. Love, Carol

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