A Special Reading

Special Reading in San Jose.

Left to right: Kiyoko Tokutomi, Patricia Machmiller, Pat Shelley, June Hymas.

Seated back to camera, Mr. Shinku Fukuda, who was visiting from Japan.

**

Today when the sun 

shown down on all the flowers

everything opened--

not only the world I made

but an opening silence

Pat Shelley

***

the woodpecker . . . then not

it’s as though the whole forest

has paused 

Patricia J. Machmiller

Just for a moment

This is Ed Grossmith, on the day I first met him during the YT Ginko at Hakone Gardens.

I didn't know then that he was a GREAT photographer whose photos were featured 

on the cover of one of out most beautiful anthologies ever.

Nor did I know how much I would like this haiku,

which is one of my all-time favorites.   jhh

just for a moment

I really believed in you

flickering candle

   

Ed Grossmith

   

Scattered Acorns; Yuki Teikei Member's Anthology 2014,

edited by June Hopper Hymas, page 18.

Tonight's bonus, two translations of a Buson haiku:

                Shoku no hi o shoku ni utsusu ya haro no yu

Lighting one candle 

with another candle-- 

spring evening

Yosa Buson on Poemhunter.com

The light of a candle

is transferred to another candle--

spring twilight

  

Buson; translated by Edith Schiffert & Yuki Sawa

His Haiku Name was Shinku

I always felt like I should call him "Mr. Fukuda" 

but he always insisted on being  called "Shinku."

One time, when he was here in the U.S., he gave us haiku gifts. 

This was written on card with golden sparkles that don't show in the scan

This one hangs in a place of honor in my writing room,

I want you to be sure to go to this link to a page honoring his achievements

that was posted after his death. He was renowned for his revision of the information

about Basho's death verse, and his theory is now widely accepted. For many years

he was also a leading spirit in the revival of renku writing. It was because of Shinku

that Yuki Teikei members were able to visit Sado Island on our trip to Japan.

Sado Island is very special to haikuists because of Basho's famous haiku

about the Milky Way.

the rough sea— 

flowing toward Sado Isle 

the River of Heaven

   

translated byMakoto Ueda, 

Bashō and His Interpreters

Here are some of Shinku's own haiku from his memorial page.

He was a Professor of Literature in Tokyo for many years.

hatsuyume ya sekai ni kakaru niji no hashi

first dream

the rainbow

that bridges the earth

irokusa ya gakuen no asa sugasugashi

colorful grasses

a refreshing morning

on campus

Fukuda Masahisa

Brewer's Blackbird

You can identify him by his metallic sheen and his bright golden eye. 

This bird is named after the 19th century ornithologist, Thomas Mayo Brewer,

who found it first on the beach. I think of this bird as

The Parking Lot Bird, because in California, it is usually found there.

Think about the resemblance of a parking lot to the beach;

there are some!

This fellow turned his head to look at me with his far eye

.near the sea at Asilomar, when I was walking about looking

for haiku inspiration during the YT Haiku Retreat in 2006..

in the beach breeze

my travels forgotten...

evening cool

Issa

translated by David Lanoue

Pipevine Swallowtail

We were at Tilden Botanic Garden recently for a haiku walk. Linda P.

told me that that was a special butterfly and to watch. So I did.

One side of the wings is an iridescent blue, that only shows when the wings are unfolded.
One cannot really see it in this photograph, which is the best one I took.

It is called a Pipevine Swallowtail, because it likes the Pipevine plant.

folding, unfolding

heedless of its beauty--

pipevine swallowtail

  

June Hopper Hymas

And this was my favorite haiku from that ginko!

Day of the Ducklings

                                                                                 jhhymas

The best surprise. One year, for the YTReading in the Teahouse, there was a family

of ducklings in the pond, as never before when we were there, 

 at the Japanese Friendship Garden!

They were quite adept in the water. 

Here the springtime has deepened

I go on and on,

go on and on.

   

The bank lined with willows dips slowly.

Buson

translation by Robert Hass

The Essential Haiku, Ecco, 1994, page 135.

Understanding

Jane Hirschfield was the featured guest at the YT Haiku Retreat at Asilomar 

in September of  1990.Since Jane has been studying early Japanese poetry for a long time, 

she and Kiyoko Tokutomi were able to share their delight in this art form.

Clouds come between friends

only briefly---

a wild goose's migration

Basho

translated by Jane Hirschfield 

& Mariko Aratani

The Heart of Haiku (Kindle)

The Zig-Zag Bridge

This bridge crosses the koi pond near the Teahouse in the Japanese Friendship Garden

in San Jose. Before one of out YT spring readings, I walked across it carefully

and saw this mother with her children. Kiyoko told me that it was supposed to

confuse demons who were crossing, but it could easily confuse you

if you are not mindful of where you put your feet.

Small koi splashing

among the water lilies

        children's voices

Pat Shelley

A Shadowed Path; 1995 Member's Anthology

edited by Patricia Moran Machmiller, page 9.

Desert Rain

This is Laurabell Hawbecker during the Asilomar Retreat with Robert Hass. 

She is a lot of riotous fun and a real "people person" with a signature hearty laugh. 

For a long time, she lived on a Houseboat in Sausalito on the San Francisco Bay. 

After they moved to Inyo County, she and her Bob were profiled on this page. 

Be sure to click the link and read about all the things they have done; it's fascinating!

The haiku below were borrowed from that page.

Desert heat

the breeze I waited for

hotter still

Barren desert

treasuring

any old thing

Desert rain

clothes on the line

still dry

Laurabell Hawbecker

The Fragrance of Wind

A group of us peering into the natural world at Asilomar.

In the center, Lynne Leach, John Anderson in black beret 

and Jerry Kilbride at the far right.

rippling waves

the fragrance of wind

in their rhythm

Basho

translated by Jane Reichhold

Water and Stone

                                                                                                                                    jhhymas

One of the many ways to look at the Japanese Friendship Garden in San Jose,

where Yuki Teikei usually has a springtime event.

When my second son was a baby,

our whole family used to wheel his stroller

around the path encircling the pond

nearly every Sunday in good weather.

There was always something wonderful to see!

asked how old he was

the boy in the new kimono

stretched out five fingers

Issa

translated by Robert Hass

For the love of Cherry Blossoms

This photo should get you in the mood for the approaching cherry-blossom-viewing season.

Sometimes it seems as if haiku were invented in Japan just to rhapsodize about

Cherry Blossoms!

A very outstanding recent YT haiku walk, or ginko, was the one we took

to the Tilden Botanic Garden in the Berkeley.Hills, led by David Sheretz. 

TBG is one of the East Bay Regional Parks, and focuses on the planting 

and preservation of California native plants.

Here Carol Steele and Ann Bendixen stand by a blossoming tree near the entrance.

Afterwards, we spent the afternoon looking at spring bloom of all kinds and learning

about the plants that grow there.

From all these trees

in the salads, the soup, everywhere

cherry blossoms fall.

      

Basho

translated by Robert Hass

The cherry blossoms fallen--

through the branches

a temple.

   

Buson

translated by Robert Hass

The end of spring

lingers                                     

   in the cherry blossoms

   

Buson

translated by Robert Hass

Two Smart Guys

At the first Haiku North America Conference in 1991!

On the lawn at Chabot College, Werner Reichhold, artist and poet,

and husband of Basho translator, Jane Reichhold,

(read about Werner here!)

engages Jerry Ball (in straw hat) in serious conversation. 

Many of us attended this conference; it was a huge thrill 

to meet so many haiku poets from 

other organizations.

iris in her hand

she talks of distant places . . .

without facing me

summer evening—

a park ranger’s brief lecture

about wildflowers

a chilly night’s walk

I can see hollow spaces

as houselights go out

Jerry Ball

Summer Grasses

This is Bill Peckham at the Hakone Gardens ginko, June 6, 2006. 

Bill is a veteran of the military and faces many challenges squarely.

He writes sonnets and other poetry as well as haiku.

In my garden,

nurtured: bonsai. Small pockets,

yet cool, deep… tree shade

William H. Peckham

Autumn evening--

it's no light thing

being born a man

Basho

translated by Robert Hass

Summer grasses,

All that remains

Of soldiers' dreams

Basho

Laughter at Asilomar

                                                                                                                                  jhhymas

Here is one of our sessions at the Y T Haiku Retreat at Asilomar in September, 2007.

Left to right: Ann Bendixen, Deborah Kolodji, Billie Dee, Mariko Kitakubo, Linda Galloway.

As you can see, the sun has gone down, but we are still having fun.

  

the familiar cough

of my neighbor's old Chevy

winter solitude

Billie Dee
(1st Prize YT Tokutomi Contest 2011)

   

****

pieces of sky

in the forest canopy -

summer's end

  

Linda Galloway 
(3rd Prize Haiku Poets of
Northern California Contest 2010)

  
****

        

carnations 

the neglected gravestone 

in the row above his 

Deborah P Kolodji

All of the Known Journeys

This is Alison Woolpert, with her guy, Alan on the wonderful 

spring wildflower walk that Roger Abe took us on in Alum Rock Park. 

Alison has been a mainstay of Yuki Teikei 

for more than the past twenty years.

alone on the porch

just the sound of this peach

is conversation

drying persimmons

this deepening of color

so deliberate

migrating whales

all of the known journeys

and the unknown

Alison Woolpert

Cherry Petal Shell

Here is Kiyoko Shibata as a schoolgirl in Japan. 
This picture was taken at a memorial service
from a photo on display, A ceiling light
 shines a golden splotch on the glassine covering.

How I love it

the sea of my hometown—

cherry petal shell

Kiyoko Shibata Tokutomi

When I asked Kiyoko to describe "cherry petal shells"
she held thumb and finger slightly apart 
to show that the delicate shell was about 
the size of a child's fingernail.
Later, she brought me some shells from Japan in a tiny jar.
They were a soft, clear, bright, not-very-dark pink.
I still have them.   jhhymas

Sky in the water

                                                                                                                                                     jhhymas

The bridge at San Jose's Japanese Friendship Garden. Our group visits every spring!

This was taken during a ginko there.

A world of dew

and within every dewdrop

a world of struggle

Issa

translated by Sam Hamill

The Water Ouzel

                                                                                         jhhymasphoto

Jim chose as his haiku name "Ouzel" for the water ouzel, or American Dipper, 

a small bird that looks for edible morsels in the waters of shallow running streams.

Those are his knees in the pictures, and some of our hands.

This is the basket of beautiful stones he brought to one of our

Haiku Retreats at Asilomar, so we could each chose.

I still have mine. I think this was at one of the last retreats he attended

before his sudden, unexpected and accidental death. jhh

  

For Ouzel

    

of all the human

figures on the beach

the one not there

he holds out to us

baskets of colored stones

—waters of autumn

in its evening flight

the crow’s swift certitude

—autumn deepens

first killing frost—

a dream of impossible choices

among smooth stones

June Hopper Hymas

  

(This was my memorial sequence for him.)

Winter Stone

This is Mimi Ahern, who has been a member of the Yuki Teikei Haiku Society

for a long time. Again, the photo was taken at Asilomar 

during one of our haiku retreats, in the lovely ocean-bounced light there.

winter stone

the shape the weight

of his faithfulness

sixty-ninth autumn...

for the very first time

I'm planting tulips

Mimi Ahern

Apologies to everyone 

for the brief and necessary pause in this blog. 

It's back in production now. jhh

A Seascape Demonstraion

Here, at an Asilomar Haiku Retreat,

Carolyn Fitz demonstrates how one can soften the water-soluble ink

of the Pilot Parallel Pen with a waterbrush.

She was using a photo from a newspaper as a suggestion for a seascape,

Now, many of us bring some art materials with is to each Retreat.

light of one candle

used in lighting another

on this spring evening

  

Buson

   

(1716-1784)

   

Buson was more well known 

during his lifetime for his art, 

rather than for the haiku 

that he often painted in calligraphy 

on his ink paintings.

   

This version is from the small book by Cid Corman

called Little Enough, Gnomon Press, 1991, page 21.