Early Morning Heat

 

 

John Carley conducted this twenty stanza Nijuin renku in 2013. It went on to win the Grand Prize in the Haiku Society of America Bernard Lionel Einbond Competition⁶.

It was quite an achievement in itself, and one might say under the conditions he suffered, absolutely amazing. John, however, was invigorated by the session. With his trademark aplomb, John’s thoughtful leadership and encouraging nature drew on the strongest attributes of each author, combining them to produce a poem of the highest quality. The judges' comments concur:

“ … when the sabaki (lead poet) communicates with clarity and the renju know just what is required, the result can be a polyphonous harmony, in which the very differences in the poets' voices are harnessed to strengthen the unity of the whole. Such is the case here.

It is no exaggeration to call 'Early Morning Heat' a tour de force, and the judges feel no hesitation in awarding the Grand Prize.”

Early Morning Heat

a line of ants in the courgette flower — early morning heat

S

perhaps you’d care to share my parasol?

J

country-western and native songs, a circle round the drum

W

she pastes her happy snaps to a favourite page

C

* * *

seeking, hiding way beyond the curfew shadows and moon

L

in the blackberry basket a taste of river fog

S

the chameleon’s tail curls between red, orange, yellow

C

with a shiver of silk her stocking hits the floor

J

everyone answers to the name of Smith at Honeycomb Hotel

L

the street-sweeper returns a gallic shrug

S

* * *

misunderstood a frog jumps into      whoops the bouillabaisse

L

a smear of something stains my new saijiki

J

snowbound highways lined with deer, the moon in every eye

W

lemmings stream across a frozen lake

C

over and over and over on hold the first four bars of Bach

W

all that Dresden china turned to dust

J

* * *

granddad hides his stash of sticky toffees in the glove box

C

a blackbird tugs a worm out of a hole

L

rising above the dry stone wall waves of white blossom

W

between our dreams of spring a bridge of sand

S

Composed January 18 to February 15, 2013
John Carley, England (sabaki) - J
Lorin Ford, Australia - L
Cynthia Rowe, Australia - C
Sandra Simpson, New Zealand - S
William Sorlien, USA - W