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[famous haiku by Matuso Basho (1644-1694) image made with Bing AI creator]

 

HAPPY INTERNATIONAL HAIKU POETRY DAY APRIL 17th 2025

None of the comments during the kukai are from the kukai coordinator. Comments and votes of the players are anonymously stated.

PLAYERS

1. Ed Bremson, USA; 2. Jackie Chou, USA; 3. Mona Bedi. India; 4. Nitu, India; 5. Corine Timmer, Portugal; 6. Marina Bellini, Italy; 7. Ana Drobot, Romania; 8. Daniela Misso, Italy; 9.Melissa Dennison, UK; 10. Eduard Tara, Romania; 11. Tracy Davidson, Uk;  12. Mark Gilbert, UK; 13. Billy Antonio, Phillipines; 14. Amoolya Kamalnath, India; 15.Mohua Maulik, New Delhi, India; 16. Swagata Soumyanarayan, India; 17. Devoshruti Mandai, India;18. Lakshmi Iyer, India; 19.Cezar Florescu, Botoșani, Romania; 20. Cristina Pietraru,  Romania; 21.Henryk Czempiel, Poland

FIRST PLACE

18

stars everywhere 

joining dots in search

of dad's constellation 

Lakshmi Iyer, India 

VOTES: 333***SCORE:18

COMMENT 1:Touchy and can relate. 

COMMENT 2:The poignant yearning in this ku was touching

COMMENT 3:Too many stars or too few and constellations can't be seen.

COMMENT 4:This is something painful yet an acceptance of the same. Simply showing love for Dad.

SECOND PLACE

8

children's laughter -

everywhere I look 

daisies

Daniela Misso; Italy

VOTES: 132***SCORE:13

COMMENT 1:Loved the juxta of the children's laughter to blooming daisies swaying everywhere in the fields. An image that shows the beauty of the poem.

COMMENT 2:The image of the children's laughter is evocative, vivid and vibes with the white and yellow of Daisies. There is a certain simplicity and innocence in both children and its comparison with daisies is so apt!

COMMENT 3:L1 and L3 are exquisitely complementing each other. Beautiful ku.

THIRD PLACE

2

mirrored windows

everywhere I turn 

winter narcissus 

Jackie Chou; Pico Rivera, California, United States

VOTES: 1*3***SCORE: 10

COMMENTS

10

milky way

everywhere memories

about fireflies

Eduard TARA, ROMANIA

VOTES: 24****SCORE:10

COMMENTS

19

lavender field...

everywhere I look

only mom's eyes

Cezar Florescu,  Botoșani, Romania.

VOTES: *22***SCORE:10

COMMENT 1:What a wonderful juxta to depict the lavender to a mother's eyes, the colour, the texture and all that that sums up a mother!

COMMENT 2:The emotion felt by the poet about her/his mother is beautiful and touching. It may be a mother who is living or has passed on but the thought is poignant.   

RESULTS CONTINUE

1

barefoot at the beach,

everywhere I'm picking up

sand burrs

Ed Bremson,Raleigh, NC, USA

VOTES: ******SCORE: 

COMMENTS

3

wayside moon

lingering everywhere 

honeysuckle wind

~ Regards, Mona Bedi.

Delhi, India 

VOTES: 111***SCORE:06

COMMENT 1: Nice short/long/short, nice pivot. I wonder if the key word "everywhere" worked better in the pivot, line 2? nice images, love honeysuckle.

COMMENT 2: Atmospheric, complex, structurally ambiguous. 

4

blossom rain

everywhere 

scent of spring ,

Nitu, India

VOTES: 11****SCORE:03 

COMMENT 1: Nice pivot, great images. We're in the middle of spring here, with all the pollen, and blossoms.

COMMENT 2:This is a quadrum, a poem in which the number of syllables in each line equals the number of lines. The pivot line works to generate a feel of universality.

5

first warm breeze . . .

everywhere birdsong

Corine Timmer; Faro,Portugal

VOTES: 12****SCORE:05 

COMMENT 1:Relatable. With the new season, comes the birdsongs.

COMMENT 2:This is eloquent. Just two sentences that capture a moment of joy. The first warm breeze of spring. Reading this I can feel it. The air alive with bird song. Beautiful. Life returns, along with hope for better days.

6

country lane

everywhere I look

daffodils

Marina Bellini, Italy 

VOTES: *11***SCORE:05

COMMENTS: A visit to a village and the beauty of nature is simply presented

7

everywhere 

the same sun -

globalisation

Ana Drobot (Bucharest, Romania)

VOTES: *21***SCORE:07 

COMMENT 1:The idea of the sun going global is a unique take and i found it amusing.

COMMENT 2:In just 5 words this haiku makes a powerful statement about humanity. This is its strength: brevity. Whoever we are, wherever we are, we are all under the same sun. We are all equal.

9

warm night

everywhere seeing stars...

does someone return our look?

Melissa Dennison, UK

VOTES: 1*****SCORE:01

COMMENTS: The leap from observation to speculation, and the leap in scale

11

an unwanted species 

spreading itself everywhere... 

mission to Mars 

Tracy Davidson, United Kingdom

VOTES: *12***SCORE:08 

COMMENT 1: I wonder if this is more senryu, but I love it, so metaphorical Emoji

COMMENT 2: Science will progress as it must. But one can already visualize the destruction of Mars. A relatable ku that resonated with me.

COMMENT 3: I find this verse both ironic and comical. There is an antagonistic effect with unwanted but everywhere, even reaching beyond where this species now inhabits. It's even more situational now with what's going on at a global level.

COMMENT 4: I A scifaiku covering millions of years.

12

thunder everywhere

rain from nowhere

day moon

Mark Gilbert, UK

13

leaves everywhere

the reunion postponed

indefinitely

Billy Antonio; Laoac, Philippines

14

not just here

but everywhere 

so spotlessly clean

this hospital

 Amoolya Kamalnath, India 

15

quake!

everywhere people running

as nurses steady cribs

Mohua Maulik, New Delhi, India

VOTES: 1*1***SCORE:04 

COMMENT 1:A recent event one cannot forget. Very touchy and poignant, and hence it stands out for me.

COMMENT 2:This verse showcases a huge respect to the frontline workers especially the compassionate nurses. In spite of life becoming tosy-turvy for the whole population, the only thing the nurses care about, even more than themselves or their own families, is their patients, who are like their own babies, not just their patients. A very heart-warming observation.

16

cicada songs

break the still night -

everywhere summer 

Swagata Soumyanarayan, Mumbai, India.

VOTES: 31****SCORE:05 

COMMENTS

17

dusty grey everywhere 

an old man mumbling 

' wars will end soon '

Devoshruti Mandal, India

VOTES: *12***SCORE:08

COMMENT 1: This haiku well describes people feelings during these awful times. 

COMMENT 2:HOPE - the one thing most of us hold on to, all our life, even after experiencing utter hopelessness in various situations in different circumstances.

COMMENT 3:This is poignant and timely. We all crave peace and yet from Gaza to the Sudan to Ukraine, the killing continues. Here an old man stands defiant in the rubble. Hope undimmed. Powerful.

20

nursing home

out of the window

buds everywhere

Cristina Pietraru,  Romania

VOTES: 211***SCORE:07

COMMENTS:A very poignant haiku and the reading picks up a whole circle from last line to the first. A very generalised experience of nursing, maybe the newborns or the aged; love and care are of the same nature!

21

New Year's Eve

fireworks everywhere

except Ukraine

Henryk Czempiel, Poland

VOTES: 111***SCORE:06 

COMMENTS