Under the Bashō 2023
Haiku
Editor: Marilyn Ashbaugh (current)
Previous Editor: Kala Ramesh (2013 to August 2023)
tuskers of pooram
mahouts swirl
the decorated umbrellas
hyderabad biryani
I compliment the cook
in chaste Urdu
play of the tigers
the dancer’s belly
burns bright
night snowfall
cleaning up the dust
on the family albums
rock concert
cranes on the woman's blouse
fly away one by one
sleepover at grandma’s
never too old
for a moonlit lullaby
sweet talking
the shaggy work horse
his side kick
teacher’s retirement
a tray of cupcakes
she holds my hand
back
the third day
ants find the corpse
of a praying mantis
robin’s song
on a rerun
comforting lies
morning raga
the birds discover
their mute button
the flightpath
of mating butterflies
double helix
fading sky
an eagle’s screech
carves the canyon
spring thaw
the waters become
colourless again
winter sky the taste of emptiness
prairie
rumors of snow confirmed
by bison's breath
September
last lemonade stand
packs up
aging
unexpected twist
in time
autumn deepens a bruise from out of nowhere
storm warning—
mom’s diagnosis
becomes my own
icicle. . .
the fight left
in me
in tune
the waters swell & surge
raga megh malhar
falling deep into an afternoon siesta mango lassi
a taste of home
in my suitcase
mango chutney
blowing her trumpet
morning, noon & evening
this cooing koel
i light a lamp
at the family altar
amavasya
swayback horses
under thin blankets
withered field
their sharp wings
scissoring the sunlight
nighthawks
storm from the north
thunder
in another language
going into the woods
the smell takes
the shape of violets
alone in the car -
a tuft of hair
out with the wind
incomplete puzzle -
that last leaf
remains on the branch
social distancing -
the singing of birds
at all hours
dew point
stars above
stars within
tulips -
colors of the rising sun
crossing the market