HOBART WATERSMEET HAIKU GROUP

A sample of haiku and senryu from members
of the Hobart Watersmeet Haiku Group

Ross Coward

birdsong
high on the mountain
the shape of wind


beating heart
for a moment
the frog’s call


scattered
along the shallow bay
black swans

Lorraine Haig

sun through mist
the horse's ears in a cloud
of insects


trapped
by the dingo-proof fence
tumbleweed


whiteout
the throaty growl
of a foghorn

Ron Moss

ancient middens
fresh unknown prints
in the sand


river walk
the blind dog
becomes the way


wind gust
all the pine needles
full of sky

Leanne Jaeger

slow dawn
a snail
traces its path


broken glass
picking up
shards of light


gusty winds
dragging the dark
through the trees


lavender bush
its halo
of bees

Terry Whitebeach

scarlet skirts
whirl the season’s changes
broad-leaf tarantella


bad news from home – my heart leaps southwards

Irene McGuire

brick wall
the graffiti
of discarded ivy


 piece by piece
 blue sky
 pierces the fog


 wooden boat festival
 tall ships
 bring back time

Lyn Reeves

cloud cover
gold in the centre
of the blue cosmos flower


rainbow season …
pied oyster catchers
probe the mudflats


honeyed light
a swarm of bees
in the peppermint gum

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Ross Sampson Coward is a retired Bureau of Meteorology weather observer. As well as being a keen observer of weather particularities he, also, delves, from time to time, into the particularities of small moments expressed through haiku. He has been writing haiku in a formal sense for over twenty years and is a founding member of the Watersmeet Haiku Group. His haiku tend to appear with the morning dew then evaporate along with strands of thought - in recent years they tend to be seen at the end of an email, in a text message, heard by other haijin or buried in a notebook, half-formed and embryonic ... waiting to be found.

Lorraine Haig lives in the historic village of Richmond.  She finds her inspiration for haiku walking along the Coal River and in her large garden she shares with echidnas and pademelons. Her haiku have been published in print and in online journals in Australia and overseas. 

Ron C. Moss is a Tasmanian poet and artist whose haiku and short form poetry, has appeared in leading journals and anthologies across the world. His award-winning poems have been featured many times and translated into several languages. Ron’s most recent haiku collection is Broken Starfish, available by contacting ronmoss8@gmail.com

Leanne Jaeger lives in Hobart. She has had her poetry published in various journals throughout Australia and beyond. Her newfound writing passion includes haiku and haiga.

Irene McGuire writes haiku and is a member of the Watersmeet Haiku Group.

Terry Whitebeach has published in a number of genres, but this is her first published haiku.

Lyn Reeves is a poet, fiction writer, editor and mentor. Her most recent collection, field of stars: haiku & senryu (Walleah Press) was launched in September. Among her several collections are Small Worlds, a limited edition fine print collaboration with painter, Luke Wagner and  Designs on the Body (Interactive Press) which won the IP Picks Poetry Award in 2010. Lyn has a Masters of Creative Writing from University of Canberra. She is currently the Vice President of the Australian Haiku Society and coeditor of Echidna Tracks: Australian Haiku.