If you stopped by the daily haiku weblogs of Matt Morden
and Paul David Mena on Sunday, you would have seen
two poems that moved me:
deepening snow
my mother struggles to remember
the names of my children
paul david mena (Dec. 4, 2005)
in my parents house
the smell of my grandparent’s house
matt morden (Dec. 4, 2005)
Matt Morden is accumulating a very good list of links to daily haiku
weblogs and other haiku and hokku-related sites. I’ve put a link to
the Morden Haiku site in the Sidebar for your convenience.
At Matt’s place today, you can find a larger, color version of this photo
and accompanying haiku, The effect is breathtaking.
november light
found on the alder
leaf ribs
On a perhaps less sublime note, if you went over to
Blawg Review #35 today, you learned that December 5th has been
designated The Day of the Ninja. Of course, pseudo-ninjas are even
more annoying than pseudo-haiku.
While at BR #35 — hosted by Colin Samuels of the Inferno-themed
Infamy or Praise weblog — you will find links to some of the best
law-related postings of the past week. I was happy to learn that
Prof. Ross Runkel has started Employment Law 101 at his
Employment Law weblog. It will be in 60 parts, posted on Mon-
Wed-Fri for 20 weeks.
I also was pleased to discover The Airport Lawyer weblog — by
Sheryl Schelin, who has some interesting insights on Freedom
of Information requests, and also shows her exquisite taste by
including a link to f/k/a on her short weblog roll. Thank you,
Sheryl.
Meanwhile, Colin has banished your Editor to the Sixth Ring of
Hell, due to my heretical thoughts on gay priests and the Catholic
Church. Innocent as Charged!
December 5, 2005
more than haiku
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let’s all join Haiku Society of America
If you’re a lawyer, judge or law professor in a big City (or even a lowly law
student), there’s a big chance you don’t spend much social time with folk
from outside the legal profession. Here’s my recommendation for meeting
an assortment of interesting and friendly people, who cross generations and
careers, but share a love of language well-used and small moments experi-
enced fully: join the Haiku Society of America.
Where did that rather self-absorbed notion come from, you might ask? Well,
I just attended my first HSA meeting (on Saturday, Dec. 3rd, in NYC) and
(a) had a great time — such that I’m not even going to complain about my post-
trip aches and pains and fatigue; (b) met, and started to get to know, people
behind names I have been seeing in haiku publications for years and people
with unfamiliar names but friendly faces and intriguing stories. And,
(c) Learned that HSA has been doing very little promotion of itself and virtually
no outreach to increase its membership, which now stands at about 800 —
with more than 75 members in New England, over 150 in the Northeast Metro
area, and over a 100 in both the Southeast and Midwest, plus 90+ in California,
and 3 in Alaska.
Thus, this is my weblog-Google-friendly attempt to tell people about the Haiku
Society of America. Along with the regular membership fee of $33 ($30 for students
and senior citizens), come the three annual editions of Frogpond — HSA’s haiku
journal (and source of many f/k/a haiku and senryu); newsletters; plus much
good feeling, camaradie. and occasional familial wrangling.
The chance to mingle with the living history and future
of English-Language haiku is pretty exciting, too.
One highlight of the HSA Meeting was acquiring the brand new book,
New Resonance 4: Emerging Voices in English-Language Haiku (edited by Jim
Kacian and Dee Evetts, Red Moon Press, 2005). Even better was having three
of the 17 poets featured in New Resonance 4 read their own excellent work from
the book — Brenda J. Gannam, William Cullen Jr., and Efren Estevez (natives of
Savannah, Havana and Petersburg [VA], respectively, and all transplanted to the
NYC area). Click this link to see the cover of New Resonance 4, and go here for
information on the series.
Another highpoint of the meeting was a Memorial for Jerry Kilbride, the much-
beloved poet/bartender and HSA inspiration. Our Honored Guest, Pamela Miller
Ness led the memorial. I did not know Jerry, but was moved by the palpable
love in the room. Here is an award-winning, classic haiku by Jerry:
fog . . .
just the tree and I
at the bus stop
Here are tribute poems for Jerry, by three f/k/a Honored Guests, from
the current edition of The Heron’s Nest (Dec. 2005):
morning bells
through a crack in the shutter
one bright star
“treebare”
turning tide
the river goes
from gray to blue
fog . . .
just the tree
at the bus stop
If reading f/k/a has turned you into a haiku lover, please consider joining
HSA. If you’ve been a haiku fan or writer for years, and haven’t yet joined
HSA, please consider a membership now. End of the haikuEsq sales pitch
p.s. At the meeting, I finally got to meet Pamela Miller Ness in
person, after our 18-month “relationship” here at f/k/a. It was a
pleasure — and, as Pamela was just voted President of HSA — a
distinct honor. Congratulations!
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