Festivals And Celebrations
summer solstice
the flash
of the first firefly
Kim Klugh
Lancaster, Pennsylvania
wedding festivities
all the village ladies
wearing lipstick
Vishal Prabhu
Greater Himalayas, India
pool of nectar . . .
Gurū Nānak Gurpurab
brims with kadā prasad
Monica Kakkar, USA/India
heatwave
in the festival tent
an old man snores
Melissa Dennison, UK
dragon parade
bundled in a snowsuit
a mighty roar
Rebecca Upjohn
Toronto, Canada
pandhari wari
bare feet
beneath a moving sky
Nalini Shetty
Mumbai, India
another year
of her love
birthday cake
Gareth Nurden
his empty slippers
still yawning at me
Father’s Day
Ruth Holzer, Potomac Falls, VA
drunken riders
throw beads
ashes at midnight
Jeral Williams, Mobile AL.
Diwali puja
mother’s hands scented
with marigolds
Mona Bedi, Delhi, India
new baby—
the dog’s forlorn wag
for each visitor
Tony Williams
Scotland, UK
Michele’s Musings
Hello friends!
Summer doesn’t know if it is coming or going here, with days over 35C then switching out to 23C in the blink of an eye. Some rain as well which we are grateful for, having already had one forest fire too close for comfort. In other parts of the world flash floods are causing chaos. It’s the beginning of typhoon season in Japan and earthquakes are a worry around the world. I hope you all remain safe!
A few of you have asked for recommendations on books to help learn how to pen better haiku. These two immediately come to mind. Check out your local libraries first before purchasing!
Three Simple Lines by Natalie Goldberg, narrated by Natalie Goldberg. Also available as a print book, but what a treat to hear Natalie’s own voice reading her own words in this audio edition on Audible. If you don’t have that app, there is a free trial version.
The Haiku Handbook by William J. Higginson and Penny Harter with a forward by Jane Reichhold. There are used copies floating around still but the newest is the special 25th anniversary one! The subtitle reads: How to Write, Teach, and Appreciate Haiku and I would add that it is one of the most comprehensive titles available. Carried by select bookstores and also on Amazon.
What books have you come across that you would like to share? Send the titles along to me with a short comment and I will share them here.
Member News
Apparently, I’m not getting out much. All our member news today comes from Charlotte Digregorio’s Blog.
rising
from the dead oak
jack o'lantern mushrooms
Mary Jo Balistreri (USA)
Frogpond, Vol. 43:1, Winter 2020
raven
in a snow storm
all the more visible
Jerome Berglund (USA)
Haiku Dialogue, Feb. 8, 2023
peace ahead . . .
an inchworm
steadies the pace
Marilyn Ashbaugh (USA)
flowering aloe
fairy lights
above the patio
Jerome Berglund (USA)
Asahi Haikuist Network, May 17, 2024
daily walk
knowing the way
framed by song
Joanna Ashwell (UK)
gathering shells –
I'm not
who I was
Ruth Holzer (USA)
bottle rockets, #10, 2004
a boutonnière of cherry blossoms
pinned to her tux
–spring gala
Nancy Brady (USA)
Honourable Mention
Vancouver Cherry Blossom Festival, Canada, 2023
kj munro is the featured poet on the Haiku Poet Word Search by ksauvage
Don’t forget to send us your news so we can help you celebrate!
Places To Submit
Drifting Sands Journal of the Haiku Foundation is open for submissions from July 1st to 15th.
Sense and Sensibility is open now until July 22nd. The theme for this issue is “Holiday, Vacation!”. Have fun with that!
First Frost is open for submissions for the month of July. Don’t forget to check out their marvelous collection of “ten haiku by”!
Frogpond Journal will be open to submissions for the month of July. They will accept up to eight haiku or senryu. In addition, your submission can include: up to three haibun, up to three rengay or other short sequences (including alternate forms of rengay and split sequences), and one renku.
Seashores Haiku Journal out of Ireland is accepting up to eight haiku for their November issue. Deadline is July 31st.
bric-a-brac is excited to announce the Haiku of the Week Contest for their upcoming 2026 Digital Weekly Planner! Four artists, 53 seasonal haiku. The result? 53 scrumptious monochrome haiga for printable planners. Submissions must be in by August 15th.
The Society of Classical Poets 2025 Haiku Competition is on now. All submissions must be in the traditional form of 5-7-5. Submit up to three haiku by August 15th at 6 pm Eastern time.
Haiku Northwest is celebrating its 22nd Annual Porad Haiku Award! Submissions open on July 14th, and must be received by August 31st. Winners will be announced at Haiku Northwest’s annual Seabeck Haiku Getaway, to be held October 23–26, 2025.
Submissions for The Short of It are open now and run until December 31st. All kinds of very short poetry and prose are accepted including haiku.
Don’t forget to check in on the Haiku in Action Instagram to see what their latest prompt is! Send in up to three haiku in response. Full submission details are here.
O2 Haiku is a new journal out of the Pacific Northwest. They accept contemporary haiku as well as what they call “One Breathe” poetry on a rolling basis. Congratulations to editors Kevin and Samantha!
Are you involved with a haiku or other short Japanese form journal? Be sure to let us know when your submission dates are so we can share them here.
This Week’s Prompt
Write us a haiku or two about a natural disaster that you have experienced or heard about. Email them by July 23rd to sally_quon@yahoo.com or kelownalady@hotmail.com (Michele). Looking forward to reading them!
Full instructions for submissions are available here.
“Twilight whippoorwill…
~ Matsuo Basho
Whistle on, sweet deepener
Of dark loneliness”
Michele Rule is a disabled writer from Kelowna BC. She is especially interested in the topics of chronic illness, relationships and nature. Michele is published in the Asahi Shimbun Haikuist, Pine Cone Review, the Enchanted Garden, Five Minute Lit, Shadow Pond, WordCityLit, and the anthologies F*ck the Patriarchy, Chicken Soup for the Soul, and To Live Here, among others. She is an associate member of the League of Canadian Poets and Haiku Canada. Michele has been awarded honourable mention twice for the Vancouver Cherry Blossom Festival Haiku Invitational and also for the Haiku Northwest Porad Award. Her first chapbook is Around the World in Fifteen Haiku. Michele lives in a beautiful garden surrounded by people who love her just the way she is.
Sally Quon is a disabled poet and photographer living in the Okanagan Valley of beautiful British Columbia, Canada. She is an associate member of The League of Canadian Poets and a member of Haiku Canada. Her work has been published in numerous journals including The Heron’s Nest, Modern Haiku, Frogpond, First Frost, and Time Haiku. She is currently working on her first book of haiku, haibun, and haiga, tentatively titled, “My Valley, My Home.”
Featherstone Creative
It appears that I didn’t provide my location and am sorry for this! Newport, Wales, UK.