Coming Undone
She always wore the same sweater. I've kept it all these years, and I wear it whenever my memories of her start to fade. Today, the last button came off, and I put it in the sweater's frayed pocket for safekeeping. When it slipped through a hole, and dropped between the floorboards, I finally realized that she was never coming home.
heirloom quilt
sparrow prints embossed
on new snow
Second Publisher's Choice Award, KYSO Flash HTP Writing Challenge
Commentary by KF Editors:
This little button of a haibun reminds us of the set-up in "The Last Leaf" by O. Henry, in which the consumptive young woman thinks that she'll die when the last leaf falls outside her window. "Coming Undone" avoids any clever plot twists and aims directly at the heart in a spare and effective way.
Tuesday, October 18, 2016
Vancouver Cherry Blossom Festival, Haiku Invitational, 2016
sakura
in the garden centre
we choose her name
Honourable Mention
Sakura Award, Canada
in the garden centre
we choose her name
Honourable Mention
Sakura Award, Canada
Inkling Press - More Grows in a Crooked Row: Tanka Conversations of Angela Leuck, 2016
More Grows in a Crooked Row is comprised of responsive tanka conversations between Angela Leuck and 15 Canadian poets.
My contribution to a tanka conversation with Angela Leuck follows:
Broken Resolutions
New Year's morn
the air hangs heavy
with ice fog
and the acrid smoke
of broken resolutions
on groundhog day
we speak of shadows
etched on snow
forgetting how we lengthen
into filaments of light
while a snow lion
roars outside our door
you tame me
with the fire in your hands
until I tremble like a lamb
a robin's trill
fades into evening
how green
the scent of longing
after the first rain
I still wear
her frayed sweater
on Mother's Day—
are we ever resigned
to being orphaned?
a perigee moon
the polished stone
at my breast
waxing and waning
with every breath
our paddles
stirring twilight
into the lake
after all these years
the stars in our eyes
four sisters
shared a bedroom
on the farm
now we harvest memories
from summer fallow fields
at the hospice
another little bird
hits the window
we'll always wonder
what father tried to say
maple leaves
and geese take flight
I, too, am restless
as autumn writes
the poetry of storms
poppies
on street corners
the wounds
we carry in our hearts
bleed into winter skies
solstice
the northern lights
shape-shift
over frozen prairie
I curl my hand into yours
My contribution to a tanka conversation with Angela Leuck follows:
Broken Resolutions
New Year's morn
the air hangs heavy
with ice fog
and the acrid smoke
of broken resolutions
on groundhog day
we speak of shadows
etched on snow
forgetting how we lengthen
into filaments of light
while a snow lion
roars outside our door
you tame me
with the fire in your hands
until I tremble like a lamb
a robin's trill
fades into evening
how green
the scent of longing
after the first rain
I still wear
her frayed sweater
on Mother's Day—
are we ever resigned
to being orphaned?
a perigee moon
the polished stone
at my breast
waxing and waning
with every breath
our paddles
stirring twilight
into the lake
after all these years
the stars in our eyes
four sisters
shared a bedroom
on the farm
now we harvest memories
from summer fallow fields
at the hospice
another little bird
hits the window
we'll always wonder
what father tried to say
maple leaves
and geese take flight
I, too, am restless
as autumn writes
the poetry of storms
poppies
on street corners
the wounds
we carry in our hearts
bleed into winter skies
solstice
the northern lights
shape-shift
over frozen prairie
I curl my hand into yours
Wild Plum, Issue 2:2, Fall & Winter 2016
caterpillar
on an oak leaf boat
i offer my hand
night fog
an owl's call fills
the spaces
on an oak leaf boat
i offer my hand
night fog
an owl's call fills
the spaces
The Bamboo Hut, Autumn 2016
believing
you were my bellwether
I followed
every footstep sinking
deeper into the mire
where are you
my fair-weather friend
have you left
for sunnier climes
grown weary of my rain
at the first
slow swell of violins
these tears
that seep into my mouth
and quench my thirst
inheriting
her jewellery chest
I wonder
about the secrets
she had yet to tell
calluses
on my fingertips
musical scars
that bleed every time
I strum our duet
at the base
of this volcano
cinnabar
our pilgrim cheeks blaze
with revelation
don't sell me
anti-ageing creams
the lines
upon this canvas
my life's masterstrokes
over time
every mountain
sinks back
into the ocean
as must we all
you were my bellwether
I followed
every footstep sinking
deeper into the mire
where are you
my fair-weather friend
have you left
for sunnier climes
grown weary of my rain
at the first
slow swell of violins
these tears
that seep into my mouth
and quench my thirst
inheriting
her jewellery chest
I wonder
about the secrets
she had yet to tell
calluses
on my fingertips
musical scars
that bleed every time
I strum our duet
at the base
of this volcano
cinnabar
our pilgrim cheeks blaze
with revelation
don't sell me
anti-ageing creams
the lines
upon this canvas
my life's masterstrokes
over time
every mountain
sinks back
into the ocean
as must we all
Presence, Number 56, October 2016
eclipse an otter dives through a ring of fire
hinterland the call and answer of wolves and moon
fallen leaves
a porcupine nibbles
the last apple
a twinkle
in the pumpkin's eye
harvest moon
Shortlisted for Best-of-Issue Award in Presence 55:
coastal trail a rainbow appears in the orca's breath
hinterland the call and answer of wolves and moon
fallen leaves
a porcupine nibbles
the last apple
a twinkle
in the pumpkin's eye
harvest moon
Shortlisted for Best-of-Issue Award in Presence 55:
coastal trail a rainbow appears in the orca's breath
NeverEnding Story, September 2016
Translated into Chinese by Chen-ou Liu
in cupped hands
the harvest moon rests
for a moment
First Place, Bangor Group 2015 Autumn Moon Haiku Contest
Chen-ou Liu's comments:
A visually stunning moment is keenly captured in Debbie's "ichibutsu shitate" (one-image/object/topic haiku).
in cupped hands
the harvest moon rests
for a moment
First Place, Bangor Group 2015 Autumn Moon Haiku Contest
Chen-ou Liu's comments:
A visually stunning moment is keenly captured in Debbie's "ichibutsu shitate" (one-image/object/topic haiku).
NeverEnding Story, August 2016
Translated into Chinese by Chen-ou Liu
migrating geese
writing cursive letters
across the sky
I finally read between
the white of your lies
Runner-up, British Haiku Society Tanka Awards, 2014-2015
Chen-ou Liu's comments:
The juxtaposition between the cyclic nature and temporal precision of bird migration and the fluctuating nature of human relationships makes this poem emotionally effective.
A fresh take on relationship tanka.
migrating geese
writing cursive letters
across the sky
I finally read between
the white of your lies
Runner-up, British Haiku Society Tanka Awards, 2014-2015
Chen-ou Liu's comments:
The juxtaposition between the cyclic nature and temporal precision of bird migration and the fluctuating nature of human relationships makes this poem emotionally effective.
A fresh take on relationship tanka.
Kokako, Number 25, September 2016
snowbound
every garden pot
a ptarmigan
crane silhouettes
i practice the kanji
for my name
our bodies
no more than stardust
we fall
from constellations
and for a moment, shine
every garden pot
a ptarmigan
crane silhouettes
i practice the kanji
for my name
our bodies
no more than stardust
we fall
from constellations
and for a moment, shine
Haiku Canada Review, Vol. 10, Number 2, October 2016
runaway (t)rain all the world a blur
orphaned cubs
mammatus clouds
after the storm
orphaned cubs
mammatus clouds
after the storm
Gusts, Number 24, Fall/Winter 2016
snow-bent
the rushes that held nests
of marsh wrens
I close my weary eyes
and turn into a song
curls of clouds
become passerines
each autumn
the low-angled light
invites me to follow
stonescapes
along the arroyo
rain-spattered
my every bone thirsty
for one last taste of you
the rushes that held nests
of marsh wrens
I close my weary eyes
and turn into a song
curls of clouds
become passerines
each autumn
the low-angled light
invites me to follow
stonescapes
along the arroyo
rain-spattered
my every bone thirsty
for one last taste of you
Creatrix Poetry and Haiku Journal, Number 34, September 2016
shelf clouds
a scare crow leans
against wind
a scare crow leans
against wind
Failed Haiku - A Journal of English Senryu, Issue 10, October 2016
Honoured to have this haiga on the cover!
Blithe Spirit, Vol. 26, Number 3, September 2016
moonstruck
the scent of night settles
in your hair
ocean waves
advance then retreat
shy lovers
teaching the shore how
to make the stones sing
odds and ends
flutter from clothes lines
songbirds
lift this mundane life
into the divine
the scent of night settles
in your hair
ocean waves
advance then retreat
shy lovers
teaching the shore how
to make the stones sing
odds and ends
flutter from clothes lines
songbirds
lift this mundane life
into the divine
Asahi Haikuist Network, September 2016
stone angels
among the ruins
a flash of stars
blues festival
stray dogs howling
at streetlights
among the ruins
a flash of stars
blues festival
stray dogs howling
at streetlights
Akitsu Quarterly, Fall 2016
a smudge
on the azure sky
day moon
orange lichen
glacial rocks bloom
with age
cloudspill
across the lowlands
muffled bells
on the azure sky
day moon
orange lichen
glacial rocks bloom
with age
cloudspill
across the lowlands
muffled bells
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