Winner's Circle!

*
 The Haiku Monday results be in, folks!

We'uns has us a new player this week, welcome aboard, Doom. 

SophieMae wuz tempted, an' we hope she'll take the plunge next week.  

An' though some regulars is missin' from this round --we missed y'all!--the turn out gave us a good run, din't it? 


I hope y'all din't find the game less engagin' fer Aunty offerin' the visuals--though clearly Fishy din't cuddle up to the black an' white, demandin' some color relief.

True confessions, Aunty punted. 

I gave Uncle  the bare rules: ( 5-7-5), a seasonal reference an' the whole emotion thang. Then I  left him to it. But, know this: Uncle is a softie! He leans toward the wistful, the sweet stuff.  Reckon he doan have much heart-space fer "companion" what's not delightful company.  Now y'all know whar' this be goin', doan'cha?

Whar' Fishy wants color, Uncle wants  joy, happy happy thoughts, an' laughter fer when the topic is  "companion."

Uncle ain't much charmed by emotion what's inward, reflective or even a recollection a good memory that now brings a sense of loss. 

Furthermore, Uncle doan care much fer no ambiguity, he rejected mah  idea that folks doin' Haiku this week would "bring yore own insight to the picture, an' no two emotions would match a given photo."  

When I suggested some types of photos (see below) might pull opposite emotions from viewers, the man jes' guffawed, "Aw, fiddle, Aunty. Who is interested in a picture ya' gotta wonder what the story is?  Ain't the phrase, "A picture is worth a thousand words?"  Well, then, gimme a clear feelin'. I has enough see-sawin' in real life, I doan think it is entertainin' to look at DIY emotional junk--is it is, or,  is it ain't? 

Jes' tell it plain."   

He doan like paintings that ain't  somethin' he knows an recognizes--all them splashy, textured, dabbed, modern art, Uncle rejects: "Whar's the beef"?"

 If I suggest some photos an' art pieces-- like the above-- reflect the disjointed nature of the culture or the artist's own emotions, he say, "What's the point? We all KNOW life is disjointed; what we need is a vision of ORDER! "  

Huh? 

"But Uncle," Aunty clucks," Doan ya' see how the artist is expressin' the frustration, the angst, the alienation, the conditionality of life?   Or the photographer is catchin' a moment  of emotion we all recognize?

 



Or, sometimes the irony of life?  The unexpected? Or the exhilaration? "

 

"Yeah?" he said, "Okay, but the theme heah is companion. Right?"

"Right," I agreed. "But all companion moments ain't slappy happy, ya' know?"

"Belle, how'd ya git to be yore age an' not unnerstan' that NOBODY wants  angst or alienation or conditionality in a companion?   Ya' know what they want?"

 "Well, I know what Aloysius wants."

Uncle, "Well, shure!  'Cause if all youse bringin' to companion-ness is pile up of compost, jes' leave me to mahself,

 or, mebbe a dawg."

In fact, a companion photo that doan show a clear an' definite smiley face emotion, ain't of no interest to the fella.

 

Well, I tried. An' lost.  This man  be entrenched in his idea of emotion proper to the theme of  "companion."

Wif'out any further kvetchin' about the judge, heah be this week's winner, as per Uncle's philosophy.

 Third Place, wif' photo number 2 goes to:

 Chick in her autumn;
life narrow and simple now;
keeps cocky comp’ny.

Uncle rewards this upbeat interpretation of a necessarily narrowed life... an'the use of " chick" as an attractive lassie to echo the chicken companion in the photo, she keeps her attitude snappy.

 

  Hooray for PamOKC!

Runner-up is awarded fer happy memories of  winsome companions in a happy season:

 Remember Maurice?
"Thank Heaven For Little Girls"
Paris! In Springtime.

Congratulations Fishy!!

  An', Ta-DA!!!!  The Grand Winner, fer a lighthearted, twirling joy of the moment plus a look forward wif' the hope of passin' on the joy of generations is:

 The dancing twirl, yes?
The young around the thumb go,
mom in future spring.

 

Way to go Doom!!   Ya' tapped into Uncle's  own feelin' when lookin' at this photo--an' now, HOORAY!

Youse the host for Haiku Monday, April 1 (April Fools Day??) !  Congratulations !!

Thanky so much to all who played! Aunty enjoyed yore Haikus an' a peek into your own hearts.

Ta -da! The Winner IS.....

*
Program note: new Post comin' soon to BACK Porch.



What a talented group of scribblers! Judgin' is dilemma, fer shure.

First, a hearty welcome to the newbies--impressive bunch ya' is, too, since it din't take no time fer ya' to be right up to speed.

Next, life happens, floods too. But we missed some of y'all an' hope youse gonna git your hat back in the ring next week.


Uncle an' me read through y'all's Haiku over dinner then sqabbled a bit on the nuances of Haiku--which Aunty maintains Uncle doan know nuthin' 'bout. On top of that, I tried to explain the inner journey aspect to Uncle--ah, yeah. Back an' forth we went...



An additional opinion wuz solicited from a clan-folk ( oh! Wish Granny were heah to do this--she'd have been a smashin' fun judge). All in all, judgin' be real real tough this go-around.

Okay--know ya doan wanna read a bunch a jabber about how close an' how fabulous the un-winners were. But thas' the truth: A solid half dozen entries charmed me or tug mah heart strings.

Karl's entry for journey especially yanked on me emotionally:

Starts as simple call.
Please come, we will need your help.
Missing home and hearth.

We can imagine slump of shoulders at the ring, yet, the cry for help--so human!--is an obligation an' a privilege. The journey is undertaken, still, one yearns fer home. I particularly like the experience we all have had--oh the journey is part of what forms us, yet at the end, most journeys do end at home.



Troll's Son of Samurai is another universal theme made specific in this son--the journey to self when Father looms large. Often this is a journey that cultures formally structure--think of Indian tribes wif' coming of age rituals.

Fishy's journey theme is of vocation--a call / journey one did not seek, but cannot ignore: Joan of Arc rides to save France. An' Moi's bittersweet immigration song...it, too, could not be ignored.

Fluerdeleo's mangled hearts on the road to Appomattox...

Eggy's plunge into Haiku included this evocative line: hills heavy with sage.

I luv the charm an' wit of Casey's "journey of the sole".




There wuz a dozen excellent lines includin' CoreyJo's "tinkling laughter" an' Curmudgeon's "bugs rise with the sun, Princess' "Fortune favours the heartfelt" an' RafaDe's "Darkness tries to prison me."


The admonitions in Kymmie an' Chickory's pointed reminders as well as Deep Blue's Rhapsody

How to winnow down until we had a winner?


In the end, Haiku does have a set of rules that Aunty uses fer cover.

First, of course, is the proper rhyme scheme of 5-7-5. Next is the use of Kigo, essentially a seasonal reference. Thirdly, the subkect matter is subjective but oughta have a universal ring to it--the best Haiku (accordin' to the Masters) oughta have an "aha!" moment where the reader/ listener recognizes the moment conveyed. An' a final consideration is a "cutting" --a division of the poem into two independent parts, but each enhances the other.

The entry that captured all these features, a seasonal reference, a universal "aha" an' the theme of journey--actual an' metaphorical-- a journey all thangs must make...an' whose two separate ideas be joined in the whole is worth noting for the surging energy in the first half that quiets away at the conclusion, "echoing" the subject matter of the verse, the double meaning of fall ... For these many layered features, congratulations to CZAR for this winner:

Seed, sprout, leaf, height, reach!
Struggle through heat-lengthened days,
just to fall: compost.

Czar, now ya' may choose a theme an' youse host an judge fer next week's fun.

Thanky all fer makin' this week quite a grand time!

An' the Winner Is...Any Day Now....

Lemme jes' say how much fun we had down Louisiana way readin' yore Haiku entries. In between bowls of gumbo an' foot long Po'Boys, Aunty would take a peek at each new submission--only, them Bayou Boyz admitted they ain't that familiar wif' the rules of Haiku: "Ya mean it ain't what ya' scream, "HAI-KU!" when ya' jomp up Japanese style to plant yore feet in some other Coon-ass' chest? "


Meanin' of course, that the judgin' fell by default to Uncle on account of Aunty bein' too indecisive--translation, Aunty an' Uncle argued about the number one an' number two spots, Aunty thinkin' thar's two number ones. (still wif' me?) But, Uncle, resortin' to football cliches, insisted y'all din't want no sister-kissin' verdict. So, despite Aunty havin' TWO top slots selected an' one VERY close second, Uncle muscled me aside to insure a single victor.

Eve'rbody did a fine job--an I jes' need to tell ya' I'se so charmed at how ya' worked this theme!

Now fer the meat of the matter--when I explained to Uncle that the rules is Old Skool Rules, he took it too literally--arrgggh! The whole idea of "tellin' a story in 17 syllables" an' the requirement to have some allusion to a season, well he stuck to that like glue. The main frustration fer Aunty be the definition of allusion. For Aunty this can be pretty loose, but Uncle be literal minded.

Karl's direct to the matter entry "You know how to whistle, don't you" made a fine lead in.


Czar's denizens (PERfect word) whistling past graveyards paints a painful story, one we's all watchin' in fascinated horror as the Hill dithers.

Fleurdeleo's Summer midnight train whistled a story we all has heard, an' found our peace disturbed.

Uncle an' me both gave a hoot at Troll's homage to GATORS! Oh yeah! The first game is clearly Fall. An' that shrill call? We's all heard that. Story told? Check.

Moi's trill tattoos air paints a vivid image, an' the visual at her blog is amazin'!

PamOKC's disaster preparations signaled by that noon whistle is a panic familiar to anyone who lives in a disaster zone or who done hid under their desks in the 60s because the Russians wuz comin'.

Karl's secondary entry, Bosun's piping, pullin' in the sails afore a tempest is a strong story, an' conveys urgency--a distinct "in the moment" feelin'. Aunty howled wif' Karl's smug little jerk second entry--oh I feel yore pain!



Fishy's Idgie an' Hank entries brought nods of recognition--Iffin' ya doan know the mistress of the Whistle Stop Cafe, Idgie Threadgood of Fried Green Tomatoes, git the movie posthaste. As fer Hanks' lonely whipporwill, that led to a discussion of bird calls--for the whipporwill's call is whistling par excellence.

But Uncle-- of course!-- had to show mah woeful lack of woodswomanship by claimin' that I had conflated two different birds, as the Whipporwill ain't the same as, only cousin to, the Chuck-Wills-Widow, whose call is similar, but not as whistle -y.


Chickory's secret for conjurin' dawgs brought a smile to Uncle's face on account of wishin' he had such a secret fer callin' up gators from the swamp. Well, I DOES need a new pair of penny loafers.

We missed what I know would be a smackin' good Haiku from some others--names withheld to protect the guilty--who wuz so weary from Eggy's revived Smackdown. But we's a forgivin' sort, an' jes' expect y'all to send in superior entries next week!


An' jes' a note afore we name out the winners. The next day wolf whistle entries is giggle good THANKY to y'all who tossed those gems out.


An' the winner is ....TA- DA!!


Fleurdeleo wif':

Summer's midnight lull.
A distant train splits the night
from peace to longing.


Fer Uncle's money, a summer night "split" by a train whistle, leaving peace on this side, an' longing on t'other, is a story an' feelin' ever'body has known at some point.

Congratulations Fleur!

Ya' can proudly affix another notch on yore Haiku badge, an youse entitled to choose a theme fer next week, host Haiku Monday an' judge--or iffin' life be too bizzy or youse headed to the Greek Isles, ya' may default the hostin'/ judgin' to Troll.

Please email me yore address fer Uncle's promised prize.

Thanky one an' all fer playing Haiku wif' Old Skool Rules.