SENSATIONAL HAIKU WEDNESDAY, prompt "review"

Another sensational haiku wednesday ... this week "review", looking back at the end of the year. How was it? This year was ... great ... I became an International known haiku-poet, the first anthology was published of Wonder Haiku Worlds and to that anthology I contributed 8 haiku and 1 senryu. It was a great honour for me.
And ofcourse this website of my. Yes ... I really had a great year.

another year
has passed away again
the same moon

the same moon
behind gunpowder fumes
New Year's Eve

New Year's Eve
after the fireworks
Ah! that silence

Ah! that silence
the first day of a new year
the wind of last year

the wind of last year
plays with bare branches
nothing has changed


HAVE A GREAT NEW YEAR WITH LOT's OF INSPIRATION


Sincerely,

HAIKU HEIGHTS prompt #99 "Christmas"

I have proposed the prompt for this week "Christmas" so I have to make a good one (smiles). Christmas? What does it mean?

Christmas, the festival of the Light coming to our world. Once ... a Child was born known as the Son of God. Christmas is, in my opinion, the holiday of the year. The message of Christmas has gone. All around the world wars and terrorism are now common. Where is the "peace to the world" which is the message of Christmas as the Angels once sang for the sheperds?
Now since we have Santa Claus, Christmas has become a time of giving presents and gifts to our loved ones, the joy of gathering and eating turkey and Christmas pudding.
Christmas once about peace to the world has become about love, giving and peace in our families and peace with our friends and beloved ones.
Christmas ... how to write about Christmas in a haiku (or set of haiku). Let's go do it, it's a challenge or isn't it?

preparing Christmas
decorating the Tree of Light
brings peace and joy

Christmas stockings
hanging above the fireplace
awaiting presents

at dinnertime
drinking eggnog, eating turkey
and Christmas pudding

a Child was born
in a cold winternight
Angels singing

peace to the world
while wars are being fought
tears of Christ

make it happen
enjoy the Holidays
Merry Christmas


Merry Christmas to all of you and may 2012 bring you all new haiku, poems, love, light and maybe ... just maybe ... at last

PEACE TO THE WORLD,

Sincerely

The Purple Tree House invitational for haiku prompt "Christmas and New Year"

I am honoured that the purple tree house has invited me to join their haiku challenge. They have given the prompt "Christmas and New Year" to write a haiku about. At their site, on the theme haiku, they have published a nice article about "how to write haiku".

They enclosed already an award and season greetings.

So here a few new haiku inspired by The Purple Tree House prompt:

dreams become true
this Christmas eve at last
a White Christmas


snowflakes whirl -
in front of the old church
the Tree of Light


this New Years day
after the wonderful fireworks
nothing has changed


yesterday's wind
on New Years Eve
still the same

As you can see. These haiku aren't in the classical way written. I write my haiku in an old classical style known as Kanshicho. In this style one can use another scheme of syllables. So many of my haiku have schemes of syllables such as 4-4-4 or 4-9-5 syllables and not the classical 5-7-5. This Kanshicho style was once an idea of Basho (1644-1694) a well known haiku master.

and a Happy New Year

THURDAY POETS RALLY week 58

Another week has gone by. A new Thursday Poets Rally has come. This last week was very busy. My wife had her birthday and all of our childeren and grandchilderen were at our home to celebrate it. It was a great day. We also decorated the Christmastree.
Inbetween these activities finding time to write haiku wasn't easy, but ... I was inspired and excited when I got the Thursday Poets Award for week 57. Another thing to celebrate.

I am honoured to have gotten this award for my haiku and I like to thank all of you who nominated me. Who am I to got this award which I humbly accept.
Well ... back to business. I am preparing a series of blog-items about Matsuo Basho (1644-1694), a haikumaster. I already published the first four parts of this new series, which I have given the title Basho Revisited (for example part one), earlier this week on my blog. In every part of Basho Revisited I am telling something about Basho's life and use a haiku written by him. Writing about Basho is easy, because I love his haiku and I am feeling a kind of bond with him. I also try to write a haiku in the same sense and tone of the haiku by Basho. I hope (and that's the challenge) that my haiku has a little of "Basho's Spirit".
According to fellow haiku poets, my haiku are in the same Spirit as the haiku by Basho. I can't say that of my own haiku, maybe you, my visitors, can tell me.

In part eight of Basho Revisited (not published yet) I used the following haiku by Basho which he wrote in 1676. It's a translation by Jane Reichhold and was published in "Old Pond: Basho's (almost) thousand haiku" also by Jane Reichhold.

essential to life
the little space under my hat
enjoying the coolness

This is a not so well known haiku of Basho. The Japanese hat in this haiku is the so called "kasa".

Credits: kasa

The "kasa" was an umbrella like hat. In some way through wearing this 'kasa' Basho always had his own shady place at hand.

The haiku I wrote in this part of Basho Revisited has the same tone, sense and humour I think.

such a hot day
my shadow needs to cool down
under the willow

Another one with the same theme:

hot summerday
the shadow of the willows
Ah! that coolness

Happy Rally!!

SENSATIONAL HAIKU WEDNESDAY prompt "preparation"

Another week has gone by. Another sensational haiku wednesday ... this week's prompt "preparation", what can I do with that? Well I thought "it's almost Christmas, Winter is coming", so I have written the next haiku:

preparing Christmas
decorating the Tree of Light
Christmas carols




Credits: Christmas tree

 winter preparation
squirrels gathering
their winter stock

winter garden
the black soil makes me sad
expecting Spring

cherry trees blooming
preparing the sweetness
of Cherries

it looks so strange
the backyard of the mansion
soon will flourish


Sincerely,

GOOSEBERRYGARDEN's Poetry Picnic on "nostalgia"

Gooseberrygarden's Poetry Picnic

I am invited to the Poetry Picnic of the Gooseberrygarden to write some new poems, in my case haiku. I am grateful that they have invited me (again) to join in. The theme for this Poetry Picnic is families, memories and nostalgia. Very well chosen themes, but not easy to write upon. So I have chosen for the theme "nostalgia".
This weeks contribution to the Poetry Picnic is based on a haiku by Matsuo basho (1644-1694), a haikumaster and my "idol".

if taken into my hand
melting in the heat of tears
autumn frost

This verse by Basho touches me deep. It's about his mother who died when he was a young boy. In the preface of this haiku he is saying the following:

"At the beginning of September I came back home. It was already long since my mother had died. The grass in front of mother's room had withered in the frost. Everything had changed. The hair of my brother and sisters was white and they had wrinkles between their eyebrows. We could only say: 'We are fortunate to be still alive'. My elder brother openend an amulet case and said reverently to me. 'Look, at mother's white hair. You have come back after such a long time. So this is like the Tamate box of Urashim Taro (an old legend in japan). Your eyebrows have become white'. We wept for a while and then I composed this verse.(Source: Jane Reichhold's Old Pond: Basho's (almost) thousand haiku)


This verse of Basho is not a well known one, but it touches me so deep, because it brings painful memories. My Grandparents are all gone and also my elder brother died. As I look into the mirror my hair is starting to become grey. When my brother was still alive he surely would be grey because he was several years older.

As inspired by this haiku of basho I wrote:

life passes -
in the early sunlight
the ripe melts


frost on the branches
melts in the early sunlight
life passes

Credits: Ripe on bare trees

my hair turned grey
as if it was the frost
on bare branches


a pebble
thrown into the old pond
in an eye blink it's gone

This haiku has the same tone and sense of the one by Basho. Ripe melting in the sunlight goes fast. Life also goes fast and just like the ripe in the sunlight life passes. I think this is the meaning of writing haiku. Life is a fleeting world. Just like time flies our life passes by in just a moment, in just an eye blink.

Happy Poetry Picnic,

Sincerely,

HAIKU HEIGHTS, prompt "Covert"

A new challenge for Haiku Heights this weeks prompt "covert". I didn't know this word and so I don't know the meaning of it in Dutch. But ... on line translators are great so I found the meaning of Covert. To write about this prompt a haiku. It's not easy, but for sure I will come with a haiku.

covert garden

behind these great walls
all those flowers

colourful leaves

in the covert garden also it's autumn
Ah! the full moon

"It's a secret"

the little girl whispers -
a large snowball

Credits: Fox Glove Lake

in the old barn
behind the hay bales
a secret meeting


Sincerely,

SENSATIONAL HAIKU WEDNESDAY "malice"

A new Sensational Haiku Wednesday challenge. This week's prompt "malice" I didn't really know what to do with this one. Malice a tone of angriness, but I am not so good at writing about negative feelings such as malice, but I have given it a try.

such a malice

cherry blossoms in full bloom
the Spring wind!

Credits: cherry blossom

despite

the rough weather, through the clouds

the full moon

in the garden

despite the heavy rain

a snowman

PS. In the last two haiku I have used a synonym of malice ... despite.

Sincerely,

Gooseberry Garden: Poetry Picnic "my life"

For The Gooseberry Garden's Poetry Picnic a new series of haiku. This week about "my life". Well ... what can I say about "my life" in haiku?

my life
it's all moving around
a Japanese verse

haiku, haiku
and again haiku
just like Basho

male nurse
the patients are my care
just like haiku

in the low lands
I write my prose and poems
in Basho's Spirit

I think that with these series of haiku I have given a good view of my life. When you need to know more? Well ... look at my profile.

Happy Poetry Picnic,

Haiku Heights, prompt "space"

 

A new Haiku Heights challenge. This week on the prompt "space". Must be easy I thought, but I was mistaken. It wasn't that easy, but as always ... I have written haiku ...

gazing at the moon
the realisation of space
emerged ...

"look at the stars dad!"
my little girl reaches to the moon
space ... enormous

this tiny house
all it's space ... full of joy
and thousand flowers

Sincerely,

Thursday Poets Rally, week 57

Another week has gone by. The Thursday Poets Rally week 57 has already begun. So another weeks challenge to write a few haiku for this Poets Rally.
Sometimes I don't have enough inspiration to write my haiku, but the last days there was an overwhelming inspiration by reading Haiku Vol. 3 by R.H.Blyth. In our haiku world we call the Haiku series (4 volumes) of Blyth "the Bible of haiku". Blyth has a great feeling with haiku of the ancient masters such as Matsuo Basho and Kobayashi Issa. Vol. 3 of this series is titled "summer-autumn". I love both seasons, but My heart begans beating a little bit harder when it's autumn. So I have chosen a few haiku with autumn as theme.

autumn tranquility

the days shorten
the colourful leaves
Ah! what a sight

mysterious moon
behind thin clouds
leaves falling

tears fall
this autumn day
has gone by
such sadness
without the full moon

credits: moon behind clouds

This series of haiku and one tanka (the last one) made for Thursday Poets Rally week 57

A cold winter day
I think of days gone
and days to come

Sincerely,

Another Sensational Haiku Wednesday

A new challenge, again a week went on so a new Sensational Haiku Wednesday has come. Also a new prompt "absence", not an easy one, surely a tough one, but I will give it a try. In this time of year (late autumn) surely there are images that are inspiring for this new prompt.

the first snow
autumn has come to an end
a last leaf falls

today a sad day

the bright autumn sun is absent
only the rain

Credits: Bare Branches

the bare trees
the backyard gloomy
no colours at all

the absence

of the blooming trees of Spring
makes me sad

Oh! that loneliness
the absence of all the leaves
even more alone

Sincerely,

On A Withered Bough

Matsuo Basho (1644-1694)

Matsuo Basho, my haikumaster, wrote in is lifetime around 1000 haiku. Some of them, such as the well known 'Old Pond' haiku, are classical ones. Another:

autumn evening
a crow perched
on a withered bough

This is one of his well known haiku. I have written a haiku in almost the same sense.

heads in the wind
crows in the bare Planetree
departing autumn

Sincerely

ONE SINGLE IMPRESSION, prompt 196 "a fool's paradise"

One Single Impression

For One Single Impression I have written the next haiku. This weeks prompt "a fool's paradise" is a tough one. How to use this prompt in a new haiku. Haiku isn't a fool's paradise, but paradise in itself. Haiku, my passion for over 20 years, the paradise I am living in. Our wonderfull world and all that is on, in, under and above her. So how to write a haiku on this prompt. Well I will give it a try.

All around me
Our wonderfull Paradise
How foolish we are

Our Paradise
Is lost in temptation
And sadness

A Fool's Paradise?

Birds are singing every day
Wow that's Paradise

Listen to the Cock
He crows at sunrise every day
Join our Paradise

Maybe not all the way based on the prompt of this week, but I loved to compose these for you, for the world, for our Paradise.

Namaste

HAIKU HEIGHTS, prompt 96 "light"

A new saturday Haiku Heights challenge. This week's prompt "light". A great prompt in this time of the year. The days become shorter and we are going towards Christmas. So a lot of items to write haiku about 'light'. I have a few haiku on "light":

the last rays of light
skylarks falling towards earth -
departing summer

in the twilight
the light of the full moon -

the first snow

cicadas singing
in the last rays of light -
the sound of water

For haiku-heights prompt 96 "light".

Sincerely,

Gooseberry Garden: Poetry Picnic week 14 'what I am thankful for in my life

Gooseberry Garden: The Poetry Picnic

Well another Poetry Picnic with a new and nice theme "What I am Thankful for in my life". I have a lot to be thankful for. I have a good health, a nice and wonderful family, I have a job, I became a oncology nurse and my international break through as a haiku poet.
And for sure I am very thankful for all those nice comments given on my haikublog.

a wonderful heart
radiating with intense love
for the world

a world full of
wonderful poetry and friends
precious

thanks to the world
for all the wonderful things
in my life

Credits: Bright Sky

This 'haiku like' poem I wrote for Gooseberry Garden: Poetry Picnic Week 14 come and look for yourself.


Sincerely,

Silent Shadows a new haiku

Matsuo Basho (1644-1694)

Not so long ago I have read all Basho's haiku (As Jane Reichold did collect them). Amazing. He wrote 1000 haiku in his whole lifetime. One of my favorites is:

deep autumn -
my neighbor,
how does he live, I wonder


This one inspired me and helped me crafting a new one in the same sense:

in the mist
silent shadows passing by
is it my neighbor?


I wrote this haiku just a several minutes ago. Looking through the window and seeing the fog, that's so common for the autumn weather of november in The Netherlands. The world looks smaller and quieter. The air feels colder and wet, but also the scent of the rotting leaves is becoming stronger. I love that smell.

Credits: Shadows in the mist

Sincerely,

HAIKU HEIGHTS, prompt 95 "urn"

Another saturday's Haiku Heights prompt. This week the prompt is "urn". What can I do with this prompt? I have given it a try, but it wasn't easy.

For my brother ... I will miss you forever.

in loving memory -
above the fireplace
my brother's urn

my brother's urn
a still life of remembrance
tears in my eyes

I wish ...
that there was no urn for him
and he was still alive

Sincerely

Rustling of Bamboo

Another haiku about Bamboo.

credits: drue.net

rustling of bamboo
the cool summer breeze -
a skylark's song

The Old Church

Not so very long ago I was on a holiday in Spain. Went to walk and ran into an nice old church. I didn't make  a photograph, but now after such a long time I wrote a haiku about an Old Church.

in the old church
the scent of incense
I hear the prayers

the sound of church bells
moves toward my home
through the Spring haze



Sincerely,

New Haiku (11.17.2011)

A few new haiku which I love to share with my visitors.

in the twilight
mist creeps low over the field -
stars twinkle

the sound of church bells
moves towards my house
through the Spring haze

a long day's walk
through the mist of autumn -
finally the moon

Sincerely,

The Poetry Palace, thursday poets rally (week 56)

thursday poets rally, week 56

A new week. So again a new thursday poets rally (week 56). I love this rally and I am glad that I have been invited to join. This weeks theme (a theme I choose autumn). I am a haiku poet and the autumn is one of the most lovely seasons (in my opinion). Just like the classic haiku poets I love the autumn moon. In my opinion the autumn moon is the most beautiful moon.

in the twilight
the autumn moon shines bright
on fallen leaves


through the branches
without leaves
the autumn moon


"look daddy!"
the little child yelled
the full moon


through the torn window
I am gazing to the full moon
of late october

Sincerely,

Haiku Wednesday prompt "meditate"

What to do with this new prompt "meditate". I love to meditate and writing haiku can be a meditative activity. So I will give this one a try.

walking on the heath
in the light of the full moon
the scent of autumn


a new day rises
inbetween the night and day
I meditate

credits: straatkaart.nl

'till next sensational haiku wednesday

A Few New Haiku, (2)

Sometimes inspiration comes along when reading a book. These new haiku are inspired by reading Blyth's Haiku Vol. II, Spring (The Hokuseido Press - Tokio).

in the Bamboo
in front of the little cottage
a sparrow sings

the cool breeze
stroking the lovely face
of Buddha's child

the small garden
on the tiny balcony
also Spring

Bamboo

Sincerely,

THE GOOSEBERRY GARDEN: Poetry Picnic week 13 "childhood"

Childhood a wonderfull theme. When I was young I played a lot with cars, but also with dolls. I had a great childhood and my parents (thank God they are still alive) were the most loving and caring humans I know. I had a brother, but ... he died for almost 17 yrs at the age of 34 on lungcancer. I had only him, one older brother, so now I am the only child living of our family. I am now 48 and I remember that I cried when I became 35, I (the youngest of two brothers) had become older then my brother. It was an unpleasant day, but also a day for thanksgiving, because I could be there for my parents.

sad memories
good ones too, I am still
in my childhood

with a lot of love
and nice thoughts about him

For The Gooseberry Garden: Poetry Picnic week 13 come and see for yourself. The Goosberry Garden a great place for all poets.