shrove tuesday i try to remember what i gave up last year

Little Onion

sun, hailstones, snow, sun
his face
peering through the window


Sangeet (with a wave to old friends!)

the last day of february—
the windshield wipers'
monotonous squeak

reflecting in
warm shimmering sunset -
childhood memories

this works much better

tossed out long ago
the red shirt
becoming pink with snow


I'm sorry, but the snow is coming down thick n'fast in Bradford-on-Avon, and I'm like a kid when it snows.
Got out of my jimjams now, and puttin' on my snow boarding jacket!

See http://www.writers.net/writers/25943

Anyone from south of England passing by in Bristol, pop a haiku in the box!

brrrrrrrrrr the snow still comin' down in lovely fat flakes, straight down, spiralling, one direction t'other, brilliant!

fat flakes
the snow fades to the colour
of the dress shop roof

Alan (brrrrrr) Summers

clear cold blue -
all the things I've wanted
but couldn't have

One cloud–
rain
in sunlight

signs of spring —
if only I could see just one
sign of spring

an old friend
purchasing diapers—
new spring

shopping village cold rain beats down down

not yet spring --
the population at
6.5 billion


According to the US Census Bureau's estimate,
on Feb. 25 the world's population reached
6.5 billion. There is an ongoing countdown here:

(My apologies...the first link was the wrong one --
this is the one I was using)

world population clock

I wrote a haiku sequence about the event as it
struck me -- the image won't show properly on a blog:

6.5 billion

.

wisteria
hangs on the gate
with lullabies

No haiku, but an announcement. For those of you not yet on Roadrunner's mailing list, Scott Metz has assumed co-editorship of Roadrunner Haiku Journal. Visit the web site to learn more!

Jason

sign of spring—
a little league billboard
freshly painted

all day showers
Tchaikovsky d r i f t s
to each room

February tree rat on neighbour's fence

winter break ends -
deplaning
we shrug into parkas

looking out a
classroom window -
hint of march

tethered and chained --
not one sign of
spring

This photo was taken five days ago at nearby Howell, Michigan, a rehabilitation center for injured or orphaned animals. Those that can be released into the wild are, but others have to be tethered until they are better, or remain in their pens. While the animals are very well taken care of, it still seems unnatural to see owls and eagles chained and tethered to trees.

not seeing spring . . .
a fly trapped
in my truck

under the willows
fo ot pr in ts
collecting rain

spring morning worms are where the ouzel waits

Frost on rear window...
Sunshine all over windshield
Glimpses of new leaves

dreary afternoon -
boxing up the last of
winter's clothes

sapphire sea—
rising from far below
drawn by the light

spring rain
the sound of junk mail
in the letterbox

snow shower...
indoors but I'm reminded
of a Charles Chaplin film


cold wet bench
a little more to wait
for the train

Alan Summers

So enthralled was I with Matt M.'s snowdrop photograph, I decided to do a pastel rendition of his image. Hope he doesn't mind.

cold front—
the last spray of windex
mists into my coffee

a flock of goldfinch

in amongst the gorse flowers

bed linen

.

Little Onion

black-bottomed clouds
careening seaward—
cacophony of gulls

the great lord
forced off his horse...
cherry blossoms

Issa, translated by David G. Lanoue

Today is Presidents' Day here in the USA,
and we especially honor George Washington
(apocryphally known for chopping down a
cherry tree and admitting it) and Abraham
Lincoln, known for his honesty, courage and
humor. Rather than posting a poem of my
own today, I thought Issa's set the right tone.

busy traffic-
a girls spins in bubbles
she's made by the road

Alan Summers

february mist—
a concrete angel
missing a wing

spring breeze
against a cloud filled sky
the roar of jets

angelee

out of Manchester spring is ahead somewhere

photo by Gabriel Ivanescu
text by Andrei Dorian Gheorghe

posted on their behalf.

spring fever
leads to hiccoughs
unthinking

[this replaces a false start but I've edited it rather than deleted it as the comments may be helpful to other users who have problems]

bleak winter
an artist peers
into spring

freezing fog -
spring lambs that won't
see spring

sounds of spring
interrupted—
ticktock, ticktock, ticktock . . .

even though mannequins have already appeared at ukku (on a blog about spring, who'd have thunk it!) . . . i couldn't resist when i came across this sight!

standing alone

at the end of winter's road -

promise of new birth

nothing
in the envelope—
cherry petals

Jason Sanford Brown
Vancouver Cherry Blossom Festival Haiku Invitational 2006
Highly Commended Haiku—Adult
http://www.vcbf.ca/qs/page/3584/3019/-1

ukk, ukka. ukko, ukku

With wind chills around 0 F. all day, this was not
an outdoorsy (much less Springy) Saturday, here
in Schenectady, New York, USA. I found myself
online, at One Look Dictionary, checking to see if
"ukku" might actually be a word. While it has not
yet made One Look or its hundreds of searched
reference works, there are a number of "ukk"
listings that I found to be interesting and/or ironic:

UKK - this acronym is the Finnish analog of FAQ:
Usein Kysytyt Kysymykset is Finnish for Frequently
Asked Questions.

UKKA - is the acronym for the United Kenpo Karate Asso-
ciation (USA)

Ukko - is the most significant god in Finnish mythology,
and is the god of sky, weather, crops (harvest) and other
natural things. The Finnish word ukkonen means thunder-
storm, is derived from his name "ukko" in contemporary
Finnish means "old man."

mid-February
you're only as cold
as you feel

Blessed spring

There are many holy wells in Ireland. Each has its annual Pattern Day, or day of pilgrimage, but year-round people come to a well to avail of its special properties. There is usually ash or haw growing nearby and you will often see the branches hung with strips of bright cloth, or offerings such as babies' toys and rosaries.

I park at the sign for Tobercranavan (‘Well of the white tree’). Local lore has it that the water here will strengthen failing eyes. On the path uphill the morning sun catches gorse in early bloom, its sweet tobacco scent on the cold mountain air. Overhead sharp shadows on scots pine make a more subtle play for my attention. Further along, I notice odd arrangements of twigs and rocks beside the path. It is said that these are secret signs left by the Tinkers.

At this well, there is a feature known as a 'coffin trough', where caskets would be dipped into the blessed water before being carried to nearby Crannagh church for burial. Having wet my eyes with the springwater, I gaze across the valley to Crannagh but see only a few chunks of granite among the brambles. I will wet my eyes again another day.

blessed spring
one last dip
on my way home



© all rights reserved

coldest day this winter --
the early buds
miscarry

morning mist
in the prayer garden
my prayer
beneath petals
of a tulip tree

island marina where the ships don't pass wild flowers

at the 4th hole
he chips for a birdie-
hope springs eternal

a lawn mower
in the distance . . .
wakakusa!

spring sunshine
Daedalus gets ready
to fly

Haiga : Norman Darlington
Haiku : Ruth O'Sullivan
© 2005 All rights reserved

Not entirely springy, but not unspringy, my newbie attempt at a tanka:

this morning's
sky of blue;
jet contrail
marking a journey
I cannot follow

tc

Message from your moderator of the moment

Hello. I'm the moderator on duty just now here at ush. If there's anything that needs attention just let me know. Thanks!

sing, fish moon!
from a cold, dark sea
call the shad home

Powder pink sunrise
Soft breeze, barely there, sways leaves
Birds wake-up singing

spring freshness -
a naked mannequin
in the ski-shop window

morning air
thick with memories-
walking hand in hand

spring warmth
creeping through
winter trees

signs of spring —
fresh graffiti
on a downtown train

signs of spring —
the homeless man’s
brand new sneakers

signs of spring —
a bikini-clad
mannequin

an auburn leaf
moves on the maple --
the first robin!

I was sipping tea on the balcony when I noticed --
grabbed my camera and went rushing outside -- just in
time to see it fly away.

no valentines -
but the next day
a robin

neighbour's field —
newborn lambs frolic
in their last spring
__________

© First published 2004 Letni casi (Slovenia). All rights reserved

no toil
no spin
just lambs

warm sun looks
through the moving clouds-
foreshadowing

brushing off the snow -
warm enough today
for a park bench moment

sunlight
i look for spring
in the window
"spring sensations"
green apple palmolive

Valentine's Day --
the new sign says
"Thin Ice"




all this talk of
shoots and buds --
back indoors, my glasses fog

A short boring note from the bureaucrat's keyboard...

Just to let you all know that I have included a link for each of you with the exceptions of David (who, as the haiku weblogfather, gets three, but I think he deserves this) and Timothy, who to my knowledge does not have a site to link to, though you can correct me if I'm wrong.

Let me know if these are the right links or you would like the presentation changed in any way. My proposal is to limit the links to community members only since folks can find all kinds interesting places from everybody's own sites.

Thanks for all of your support in what promises to be an interesting and rewarding experiment.

the evening news -
regardless green spikes push up
out of dark earth

under the seesawing leaf . . .
a shadow
peeking at sunlight

early spring
the land gives birth
to another year

all through winter
waiting for spring rain.
now she yearns for summer...

First published World Haiku Review 2005

a single scull
on the River Itchen;
white morning light
tc

scent of spring
a north wind rushes
through the gully

early thaw—
slowly draining
the baptistry

Thaw

Winter turns to spring, the first primroses are on the roadside. Although I can see snow on the hills, and an icy wind continues to blow, each day is a little longer than its yesterday, and there is some warmth in the sun. I have caught a chill from digging in the garden under that north wind, but I am sure it will pass in a day or two.

I have a friend who has been through a much harder winter. For her one icy storm has followed another, her winter so profound as to seem never-ending. But spring will come in her country too.


at last the sun climbs
in the eastern sky —
a steady drip of thaw

_________________________

First published Lishanu 2005
© author 2005. All rights reserved.

End of my last road
across the deep ravine
hata blooms, sweet moonrise

* hata = the magical flower in W.H. Hudson's Green Mansions.

morning sky -
delicate butterflies
dance in sunlight

the spring moon
was at my window
in the night
but it has gone
now too

ukku is launched --
the Mohawk* finally
freezes over


* The Mohawk River,
Schenectady, NY, USA

ukku spring haiku will be open for postings from tomorrow (13th Feb). The site will remain live to 13th April - the next but one full moon.

All haiku poets and/or webloggers interested in taking part are welcome to join up - email me or Alison if you would like to be sent an invitation.

The only pre-requisite for posting is that there should be a Spring (or signs of Spring) theme to the subject matter. Postings could be haiku, senryu, tanka,haiga or haibun. Photos or graphics in an haiku spirit are also welcome.

There are no other formal "rules". Diversity and eccentricity are encouraged, but we do reserve the right to remove spammers or anyone who consistently gets on our lumps.

We will include a link to the relevant weblog or homepage for all participating poets.

Let the Spring postings commence...

Welcome to ukku spring haiku.

This is a weblogging community for haiku poets interested in recording the coming and progress of Spring 2006.

The site and community will be open from the full moon on February 13th 2006 to the full moon on 13th April 2006, the date at which the length of day exceeds the night here in the UK.

The name ukku comes from the UK haiku poets mailing list of the same name (uk ku) run by Alison Williams.

Come back and visit us soon...