childhood beach house
the wind ripples the dune

midday downpour-
black eyed susan floating
in swollen river

torrential rains -
in the absence of bird songs
thunder peals

blue sky -
a crucifix
of vapour trails

thin slips of fire and passion
the glad and the lily --
garden dance!

midday ride
enjoying peach hibscus blooms
during lumber run

empty wine-bottle -
snail
for a cork

tomatoes ripen
under lashing rain -
chutney

~~

loops of seawater
tide circles . . Mobius style
nautilus spirals

~~

walking to the car
white hibiscus blooms
poking through the gate

I’m bankrupt! I have “writer’s block”. I’m reclusive because I can’t get a job interview and just keep looking on the net. So, to cheer me up I thought that I would share some oldies. I hope you like them; I did:

dusk—
the light goes out
with the tide

evening shower
the cricket chirps once

fishing village
the bow lanterns fade
in the dawn

a break in the rain -
swifts
loop-the-loop

rude awakening;
the clatter of a dustcart,
empty bins

original photography by K.M.


car roof catches
the roses of sunset
that spill
from the sky above --

Kelly M.

first light
day creeping up
the dew slicked grass

Wounded blue sea,

a minor wave is trying

to take its last breath

Angeliki K.

(photo by me)

elder berries
bulging bright
...sparrows' eyes

lavender spikes --
bumble bees
dodging snails

wind through the trees -
the ragged edge
of a blackbird's song

family reunion
seeing faces like my own
over great barbecue


I met my father's family for the first time last week

morning rush
he sips his tea
again

eyes flashing
in the undergrowth -
a hungry cat

2 am

still now -
rows of blank houses
and defiant foxes watching

still summer night
the taste of my daughter's sweat
as I kiss her brow

tiny flowers
and caterpillars
among fennel's liquorice leaves

.
important words
a cabbage butterfly circles
my universe


Even a single word is poetry, please take a moment to visit:
http://www.oneandother.co.uk/participants/Alan_S

all my very best,

Alan

outside the exam-hall
the passion flower's
intricacies

leftover--
the sardine's eyes
dimming

morning shadows
and the remnants of the dew -
snails race the sun

from jenny on my 50th

may years like soft rain
fall upon you, a lake
of rising wonders

eventually I realise
Sinatra sang his evergreens
off key
since my child's laughter
in a long distance call

.
azure afternoon
from an accent I guess
it's my new sister

.



(Alan note: my new baby sister (well, of 40 years) phones me on my mobile phone out of the blue!)

1 am

humid blue night -
close together watching
Play Misty For Me

Hail! these electric spiders

storming over the sky,-

soft tinkles of window glass

fallen leaf
on the still pond--
ripples a moment

ground spattered
with husks of raspberries;
sparrows linger

3 am

a flickering patchwork
of shadows -
moths around a street light

a red tail held high
in the undergrowth -
a fat cat emerges

the sun reappears
a lonely football
waits in the gutter

.
.
perfect summer
I talk to my mother
I've never seen




(Alan note:
I just finished phoning my mother in Perth, Australia having being given my mother's number by my new uncle.

I have never seen my family, but I hope to see my new half-sister. She just so happens to be currently working in London not far from my London event!)

Alan's Trafalgar Square Living Statue Weblink: Alan's Fourth Plinth
.

MOSQUITOES

Silent mosquitoes
flying over my body--
slap hands together

butterfly summer--
yellow confetti
fall from heaven


Image source http://7art-screensavers.com/screenshots/butterfly/yellow-butterfly.jpg

summer vacation -
camp-fire smoke
rising to the moon

(winner Carribean kukai #5:summer vacation)

mother's scent -
bees harvest lavender
under cloudless skies

Humidity

humidity
the sound of a train
two miles west

mosquitos

familiar songs in my ears,

and yet another hits

- this time it's my neck

again the fragrance
of buddleia -
summer never forgets

pendulous clouds
and the geraniums bob
to music of the wind

small mouth surfacing
sprays me with laughter
pool-side service

and then come the seeds
rapidly fired
sticky sun kisses

the best part is the end
when we hold up our jars
casting light freckles

conclude the day
the cranes inhale the sunset

threatening to tumble:
heavy stormclouds and
motorbikes on slopes

Summer Morning

birds shelter in trees

morning rain drops on green grass

nourishment from God.

retired -
watching apples
busy reddening

an orphan leaf
slithers with the evening wind

early sunshine
salmontail flowers twisting
in a light breeze

(1)
bombing--
the dog sniffs
the thin air

(2)
darker
than the rainclouds
:the dust


*Jakarta shocked by bombing at Ritz Carlton and JW Marriot Hotel, Thursday, July 16, 2009. In solidarity to the casualties.

rain patters
flower pots and garden ponds
ripple

running the cool grass
I am called by fountains
and remember joy

.
street festival
three lads try to scam haiku
for free chocolate

Woolley Street Festival:
http://www.woolleyfestival.co.uk/stalls.htm
.

.
car park pothole
the mum watches the boy
in and out of a puddle
.

Still Pond Richmond Park

at the still pond even my watch stopped

graceful hunter takes flight
the skies call her name--
sunfish in her belly

fallen rose petal -
a tiny ant
climbs a red mountain

a lull in rainfall
worker bees take advantage
Knapweed's golden suns

his welcome back kiss...

two days apart still too long

warm summer evening

Summer Storm

lightning
thunder
from a different sky

petals unfolding
even under a summer storm
flowers bloom
what have you done to my heart,
closed even to the bright sun?

while the midnight sky
tore itself apart
with lightning -
my barefoot children
danced in the puddles

moon-tilted
tide -
a swan rocking

persistent rain
fills my ears with the sound
of growing weeds

dark and straight
gets longer after lunch
:the flagpole's shadow

we caught a glimpse
in the wandering night
a limp vine strung on bark

my aunt indignant 
loosestrife planted by neighbour
the weed

sweet ebony rose
grows far from all
it's silver thorn
sharp and unforgiving

summer blues
blogger accuses poets
of spamming

~~~♥~~~

maturing pears
when sunset blush echoes
finches gather

~~~♥~~~

river dusk
a moth follows the light

spikes of crocosmia
heating dry pavement;
powder blue sky

Blogger thinks
summer haiku is spam;
No! Luncheon meat at best.

please be patient -
rainfall
and word verification

at midday the deer
cluster under the shadows
of ancient oaks


Photo by r0b1

morning commute
dew rimed melon roses
glisten in the sun

the night sky thunders/yelping dogs/reply

back to the sunset

the song of the blackbird

in the sunflower field

grey sky
purple buddleia
the blessed cool of rain

this winking sun
an invasion of mushrooms
forced to drip dry

I do not hunt words
but gather sprinkles of mind-play
while chasing fireflies

STILL NIGHT

Still night
nude kisses in park
images haunt

--R.K.SINGH

afternoon break
warm air behind the shop
filled with honeysuckle

pale dusk--
grandma keeps on gazing
at the wall calendar

midnight commute
wisps of white curl in the sky
pointing the way home

dusk--
the ancient sun lies down
in a bed of roses

quiet pool
a tiny petal falls -
a shiver throughout...

Sparrow song as
clover flowers
tickle bare feet

at last summer!
thirsty grass crackles
under my feet

too late I find you
curled tight at the tips
sprung from a crack

midnight gardener
darkens the lavender
mists the moon

through the night
moon travels across my room
and sleep eludes me

I come to you empty and sorrowful
take me back, take me back on this warm summer's night

I had been away....along time
joyful, I see the day lilies that rim the yard
so much missed, so much lost

hot flesh melts in the raw sun
she reaches out for him
his skin slick with oil
golden god and goddess of youth

the sky is blue today
summer has come at last
perfume fills the air
flowers bloom in hot sun

Cool Summer

cool summer wet light rain
oh, where is the warmth of my youth?

here and there
under dappled green leaves
red plums are glowing

Clematis

purple clematis
so dark it swallows sunlight
in a velvet embrace


in the shadows
something darker -
purple clematis


Photo Purple Clematis by KTDEE

monastery garden -
sunflowers'
heads bent

(winner sketchbook kukai: sunflowers)

Yellow poppies,
their unblinking eyes
stare at the sun

afternoon heat
the mountain's shadow spreads
on the water

Standing in the doorway--
Dark silhouette of a man;
Fireflies glitter.

in moonlight
my eyes finger your body
like braille
skimming texture
before laying hold of meaning.

summer foot bridge
a water rat sniffs near my shadow

Cool air and damp grass;
pigeons cooing in the trees,
buddleia flowers

Breaking the Law

jaywalking

nuns -

leaving morning Mass

HAIBUNIC ANECDOTE

Wrote these lines today on the back of my sales receipt while having dessert, after a late lunch in a neighborhood buffet restaurant. Probably still thinking of "In the name of love" poems I recently posted here. Being a wordsmith that I am, my poetic persona meandered to a familiar magical place where the past and the present meshes into one. With just a little bit of remembered lives or events, an avalanche of words spews out from nowhere and weaves themselves into a poem. Like this one.

the entwined ivy
and blooming rose
reach for the sun
the entanglements
of forbidden love

Wall Street Churchyard
worms pass through crabapple petals

My little boy, Afrizal Hasbi Azizy, was hospitalised for tonsilectomy on Saturday (July 11, 2009) morning. When he was escorted out of the operation room, I saw him crying so painfully. He uses to be brave and afraid of almost nothing. But that morning, I saw the tears rolled down on his face. It happened just 5 days before his 8th birthday; the day he's been thinking about in the last three months, the day he'll be expecting a set of Pokemon card as his birthday present from his mother. I won't be able to be home on the big day to hug him with love, and to surprise him with another given away.

firefly in a cookie jar--
a dream birthday present
for a wounded boy

summer stigmata

everyday she wears

a new bite

with a shimmer

ants ascend - above

the gulls circle

a solitary bee
wanders
the aching blossoms

payment for yesterday's sun:
Blackberry flowers are whiter
than today's clouds

spilling rose petals
the rose
reveals itself.

~~
summer sunset
bistro table reflects tint
merlot goblet

~~

through the window
white rimmed red petunias
dancing in the breeze

yesterday's rain--
a prolific blossom fall
today's crepe jasmins

first published at Wordchimes July 7th 2007

elegant duck -
beneath the surface
furious paddling

Lavender spikes
twisted into spirals -
the wind drops

In the name of love

she gunned him
as she can't bear
to share her lover
then she killed
herself

mystery solved
he disappeared
only to admit later
he's with his other love
in Brazil

for ellie

palest rosebud
nestled in her own softness
newborn's milky dream

I wasn't sure
which sparkled more
the snagged fish or your smile

trembling butterfly
alights upon me softly
haiku's first line

evening wind rocking treetops
...a distant lullaby

early commute
the moon racing me
over the hills

summer break
I sense the silent ticking
of the hotel wall clock
it's the same place
but without you

Wind Tonight

wind tonight
in the empty chimney
the cricket’s song echoes
how long has it been
how long, how long…

.
sun and raindrop,
after the storm, lie quietly
--on the the same leaf
.

.
after the storms
unfolding from a green leaf
the scent of rain

.

a crack on the ceiling,
the rain drops into the beat
of the wall clock

mona lisa's glimpse--
a rosebud unfolds
after the rain

Lavender spikes
whipped by chill breeze;
lovers caress

end of house sitting
sun pulsating
as I drive back home

heat lightning -
shouts
in the nearby street


***

éclairs de chaleur -
des éclats de voix
dans la rue voisine


Have a nice summertime et rendez-vous en août

the river writes its name in gold -
sunset

before the storm
launched the steel-framed hammock
ingratiating calm

unyielding steamy
press of summer
strange how I miss you

emerging from work
I burn my feet on concrete
summer's welcome pain

for a moment,
the waves show
the water beneath

barefoot children -
over hot stones
a little jig

late summer -
on this day of glimmering sea
and sky
I've become
the wind's song

Modern English Tanka V3 No4 Summer 2009

Tomatoes
ripen in hanging baskets;
globes of delight

sunset -
trees recede into
silhouettes.

shift from hell....
deep breath of honeysuckle
soothing taut nerves

evening commute
the slow and scenic route home
to leave work behind

over fresh green grass

under the cool shade of trees

my four dogs napping

wrapped in night's sheer veil
ripened luna waits
leaking gold dust

awaits a rickshaw
under the gulmohar tree
a girl with lilac

--R.K.SINGH

Rain pours
from an indifferent sky.
Strawberries in window boxes.

house sitting-
rabbit bolts from the garden
as I start the sprinkler

for Marivie

now I know
why our embrace
was so tight
your last farewell
to fleeting life

among the white
one pink waterlily
fills the pond


Pamela A. Babusci
previously published

crossing the moonbridge
under starry skies
July wind & i


Pamela A. Babusci
Mainichi Daily Haiku Japan
July, 2, 2009

beyond your voice
i sit
in silence
in two worlds
with and without you.

evening kimono
pools at my feet
i imagine your eyes
a fugue of stars
a world of forward glances.

pink-and-white
bindweed flowers, beauty
but no scent

Floating down the river:
A burlap sack
full of sorrow

tip-toeing
between the clouds:
heron

rose
blooming
...silent explosion

This morning
a shimmering rainbow
silver shower

--R.K.SINGH

Grey skies
with the promise of rain.
Fresh-picked raspberries.

Tour de France

It wouldn't be summer without Le Tour and two days ago the cyclists mounted their trusty steeds in Monaco. They are now cycling through Provence in the direction of Marseilles and will cross into Spain and arrive in the beautiful city of Barcelona. From there the route will take them up into the Pyrenees and back into France...and that's just the first week. In three weeks time they will arrive in Paris. It's a great event, and I love it. I'm following it on TV but I've been fortunate enough to have seen it live in the Alps a couple of times. Let's hope that the doping controls work effectively again and that any cheats are swiftly caught. Chapeau!

the bicyle race
through the sunflower fields,
the shadows on the road

Listening all night for
missing drops of water
surviving only deep roots

.
attempted robbery
a festival writer in residence
sits it out


I was a writer in residence for Frome Festival (U.K.) last Saturday, at a lovely bookshop, while a friend of mine was in a jewellery shop. While I had lots of people coming up to me (one image on Facebook) and asking what I was writing, the guys in the jewellery shop were doing the opposite.

Alan

Grey sky
like aluminium foil.
White poppies wilt.

full grown
the bracken
swallows sign posts, park benches, Fallow deer

.
Tonight the Thames
carves a translucent jade bowl
out of the July rose moon

shuffling with a walker
her smile explodes -
independence day

Independence
the smell of the night sky

Clear sky, morning heat -
The scent of lavender
on the breeze.

the ladder on the trunk
of the cherry tree
- rising moon

***

l'échelle appuyée
au tronc du cerisier
- lune montante

after the kiss
dew glistening
on the petals.

early morning
pulling weeds and deadheading shrubs
to center myself

Kandiserede hybenrosenblade
smagen af lykkelig barndom
smelter på ganen

-

Candied Dog Rose petals
taste of happy childhood
melting on my tongue

Canopy of grey
seals in the stink
of tarmac and sweat.

evening drive
melon sun shimmering
over the duck pond

VANISHING STARS

In memory of Ed Mcmahon, Farrah Fawcett,
Michael Jackson, and Karl Malden

a series of shocks
rocks Tinsel town
who's next in line

a Hollywood script
has a beginning, middle
and ending
after the show is done
its essence still remains

with differing
allure and aura
the stars brightened
touched and entertained
our mundane lives

we basked
in their triumphs
and wept
at their failures
what a ride, what a ride

one by one
they arrived
one by one they left
thanks for the memories
we all mourn your deaths

Victor P. Gendrano
Author of: Rustle of bamboo leaves

how futile!
to try to count the furls
of these rose petals

First published at webworks Haiku

For Diana (Another version and that's it folks, no more)

grandma's ranting
the weak wipers no match
to the relentless rain

dead in the grass
a bee --its wings
gilding my fingers

stifling heat -
the occasional whirr
of dragonfly wings

summer thunderstorm
as lightening splits the night sky
the cats snuggle closer

in the black plastic bag -
bloated maggots

blackbird trilling
through the trees
a stream

on the patio
a warm teacup half empty
and the rocking chair


To Diana: Thx for the grammatical correction.

No clouds today.
Air is heavy with the scent
of mock orange.

blinded again
by uncompromising rain
and these weak wipers

afternoon musical
keyboard staccato and
birdsong legato

home alone
the garden shredder
jams up

* * *

yksin puutarhassa
oksasilppurin terä
leikkaa kiinni

after rainy week
knee high weeds
growing through the gate

For Beatrice

how long
shall I wait for
your empty promise
after winter chill
or summer heat

For Gwilym

a commotion
in the sidewalk
for a tossed quarter
voiceless victims
of society's failings

For Nora

a cap and gown
crowd his empty room
postponed graduation

Overnight rain
raises humidity.
Unripe plums wither.