Biting NOT Barking: Identity Haiku by Fay Aoyagi

English Original

I

dent

it(ch)y

Modern Haiku, 52:3, Autumn 2021

Fay Aoyagi

Chinese Translation (Traditional)

我

受傷彎身

開始(發癢)了

Chinese Translation (Simplified)

我

受伤弯身

开始(发痒)了

 

Bio Sketch

Fay Aoyagi （青柳飛）was born in Tokyo and immigrated to the U.S. in 1982. She is currently a member of Haiku Society of America and Haiku Poets of Northern California. She serves as an associate editor of The Heron's Nest.  She also writes in Japanese and belongs to two Japanese haiku groups; Ten'I (天為) and "Aki"（秋), and  she is a member of Haijin Kyokai (俳人協会).

Biting NOT Barking: Arms Deal Haiku by Simon Hanson

English Original

arms deal

prosthetic legs, too

Simon Hanson

Chinese Translation (Traditional)

武器交易

還有, 義肢

Chinese Translation (Simplified)

武器交易

还有, 义肢

Bio Sketch

Simon Hanson lives in forested Tasmania in the company of animals and birds and the sounds of a trickling creek. Formerly Secretary to the Australian Haiku Society he is currently co-editor of Echidna Tracks. He has an e-book collection; Desert Stones (Snapshot Press) freely available here for you. 

Biting NOT Barking: Charcoal Smog Haiku by Kala Ramesh

English Original

charcoal smog

chuk-chuk rail gaadi 

                darkens

into its noise

 

Frogpond, 47:2, Spring/Summer 2024

Kala Ramesh 

Chinese Translation (Traditional) 

木炭煙霧

楚克, 楚克, 火車引擎的聲音

                  漸漸變得低沉

化為它自己的噪音

Chinese Translation (Simplified) 

木炭烟雾

楚克, 楚克, 火车引擎的声音

                 渐渐变得低沉

化为它自己的噪音

Bio Sketch

Kala Ramesh is the Founder and Director of Triveni Haikai India, the Founder and Managing Editor of haikuKATHA Journal, an anthologist, and an external faculty member of Symbiosis International University Pune, where she taught a 60-hour haikai course from 2012 to 2021 — a first in India. She has organised eight major haiku festivals and to bring haiku into everyday spaces, Kala has initiated several successful projects in India.

Biting NOT Barking: Hyphen Haiku by Fay Aoyagi

English Original

spring mud

the hyphen

before American

Frogpond, 44:2, Summer/Spring 2021

Fay Aoyagi

Chinese Translation (Traditional)

春天的泥漿

放在“美國”之前

的連字符

Chinese Translation (Simplified)

春天的泥浆

放在“美国”之前

的连字符

 

Bio Sketch

Fay Aoyagi （青柳飛）was born in Tokyo and immigrated to the U.S. in 1982. She is currently a member of Haiku Society of America and Haiku Poets of Northern California. She serves as an associate editor of The Heron's Nest.  She also writes in Japanese and belongs to two Japanese haiku groups; Ten'I (天為) and "Aki"（秋), and  she is a member of Haijin Kyokai (俳人協会).

Biting NOT Barking: Flag-Covered Coffin Haiku by Nick Virgilio

English Original

flag-covered coffin:

the shadow of the bugler

slips into the grave

Selected Haiku, 1988

Nick Virgilio

Chinese Translation (Traditional)

覆蓋國旗的棺材：

一位吹號手的影子

滑入墳墓

Chinese Translation (Simplified)

覆盖国旗的棺材：

一位吹号手的影子

滑入坟墓

Bio Sketch

Nick Virgilio (June 28, 1928 – January 3, 1989) was an internationally acclaimed poet who played a pivotal role in popularizing haiku in the United States. Following his debut publication in American Haiku in 1963, Virgilio composed thousands of poems over a career spanning more than two decades. His seminal 1988 collection, Selected Haiku, remains one of the most influential volumes in American haiku history. To explore his legacy further, read Cor van den Heuvel’s 1990 essay, "Nick Virgilio and American Haiku: Creating Haiku and an Audience," originally prepared for the International Haiku Forum in Matsuyama, Japan.

Biting NOT Barking: Prayer Plant Haiku by Barbara Sabol

English Original

another shooting

leaves of my prayer plant

unfurl

Modern Haiku, 53:1, Winter/Spring  2022

Barbara Sabol

Chinese Translation (Traditional)

又一次槍擊

我的祈禱樹葉

一片片展開

Chinese Translation (Simplified)

又一次枪击

我的祈祷树叶

一片片展开

Bio Sketch

Barbara Sabol’s most recent collection, Connections: core & all, was published by Bird Dog Press in 2022. She is the associate editor of Sheila-Na-Gig online. Barbara conducts poetry workshops through Literary Cleveland. She lives in Akron, Ohio with her husband and wonder dogs. 

Biting NOT Barking: Zombie Fires Tanka by Debbie Strange

English Original

zombie fires

come back from the dead ...

this wilderness

haunted by skeletons

and memories of trees

 

Blithe Spirit, 35:4, 2025

Debbie Strange

Chinese Translation (Traditional)

殭屍之火

死而復生

這片荒野

被骷髏和樹木的記憶

纏繞不止

Chinese Translation (Simplified)

僵尸之火

死而复生

这片荒野

被骷髅和树木的记忆

缠绕不止

Bio Sketch

Debbie Strange is a chronically ill Canadian short form poet, haiga artist, and photographer. Snapshot Press released her first full-length haiku collection, Random Blue Sparks, in 2024. It received 3rd Place honours in the 2025 Haiku Society of America’s Merit Book Awards. An archive of awards and publications can be accessed at http://debbiemstrange.blogspot.ca/ and you are welcome to follow her @Debbie_Strange on X and @debbiemstrange on Instagram.

Biting NOT Barking: New Leaf Haiku by Eric A. Lohman

English Original

turn of a new leaf over and over climate conference

 

Trash Panda, 5, 2023

Eric A. Lohman

Chinese Translation (Traditional)

重啟新頁一次又一次氣候變遷大會

Chinese Translation (Simplified)

重启新页一次又一次气候变迁大会

Bio Sketch

Eric A. Lohman is a psychiatric social worker at a large public teaching hospital in downtown Atlanta,  Georgia, USA. His career focuses on helping the homeless, addicted and chronically mentally ill populations of Atlanta and the surrounding area. Most of his writing serves as a response to that reality. 

Biting NOT Barking: Wagtail Haiku by Gareth Nurden

English Original

a wagtail

before its tail-flick

my phone screen flickers

Gareth Nurden

Chinese Translation (Traditional)

一隻鶺鴒

在它搖晃尾巴之前

我的手機螢幕閃爍了一下

Chinese Translation (Simplified)

一只鹡鸰

在它摇晃尾巴之前

我的手机萤幕闪烁了一下

Bio Sketch

Born in Newport, Wales in 1988,  Gareth Nuren has been writing poetry since his teenage years and has spent his most recent years focusing on writing senryu and haiku and has had nearly one-hundred pieces published in fourteen countries. 

Biting NOT Barking: Refugee Train Haiku by Debbie Strange

English Original

refugee train

small hands starfished

against the glass

 

First Place, 2024 Triveni Awards

Debbie Strange

Chinese Translation (Traditional)

難民列車

小手像海星一樣張開

緊貼著玻璃

Chinese Translation (Simplified)

难民列车

小手像海星一样张开

紧贴着玻璃

Bio Sketch

Debbie Strange is a chronically ill Canadian short form poet, haiga artist, and photographer. Snapshot Press released her first full-length haiku collection, Random Blue Sparks, in 2024. It received 3rd Place honours in the 2025 Haiku Society of America’s Merit Book Awards. An archive of awards and publications can be accessed at http://debbiemstrange.blogspot.ca/ and you are welcome to follow her @Debbie_Strange on X and @debbiemstrange on Instagram.

Biting NOT Barking: Bloody Hand Print Haiku by Denis M. Garrison

English Original

back home after work --

on my fresh-painted front door

a bloody hand print

Fire Blossoms, 2008

Denis M. Garrison

Chinese Translation (Traditional)

下班回家 --

在我剛粉刷過的前門上

一個血淋淋的手印

Chinese Translation (Simplified)

下班回家 --

在我刚粉刷过的前门上

一个血淋淋的手印

Bio Sketch

Denis M. Garrison was born in Iowa, USA, and his childhood was spent in Japan, youth in Europe, Africa and western Pacific. His poetry has been widely published. Garrison’s print collections include First Winter Rain,Eight Shades of Blue, Hidden River, Sailor in the Rain and Other Poems, and Fire Blossoms.

Biting NOT Barking: Shelter Tanka by Marion Alice Poirier

English Original

under the shelter

of a weeping willow tree

she sleeps at last

on damp earth and newspapers --

a haven, for one night

Marion Alice Poirier

Chinese Translation (Traditional)

一棵垂柳

的蔭蔽之下

躺在潮濕泥土和報紙上面

她終於睡著了 --

一個避風港, 僅僅一晚

    

Chinese Translation (Simplified)

一棵垂柳

的荫蔽之下

躺在潮湿泥土和报纸上面

她终于睡着了 --

一个避风港, 仅仅一晚

Bio Sketch

Marion Alice Poirier is a lifetime resident of Boston, MA. She began writing haiku in 2001 and eventually began to teach haiku in workshops on Poetry Circle and Emerging Poets. She also write short poetry and have been published in on-line haiku and short poetry journals like Tinywords, Hedgerow and The Heron's Nest.

Biting NOT Barking: War Crime Haiku by Garry Eaton

English Original

war crime

he puts a gun to his head

and kills them all

Kamesan's World Haiku Anthology on War, Violence and Human Rights Violation, 2017

Garry Eaton

Chinese Translation (Traditional) 

戰爭罪行

他用槍指著自己的頭

然後殺死他們所有的人

Chinese Translation (Simplified)

战争罪行

他用枪指着自己的头

然后杀死他们所有的人

Bio Sketch

Garry Eaton was a Canadian poet from British Columbia. He started writing haiku in 2006 and was published occasionally in the major haiku magazines. He volunteered as the digital librarian for The Haiku Foundation Digital Library.

Biting NOT Barking: Snowflakes and War Tanka by Kirsty Karkow

English Original

shot with snowflakes

my image in the window

all a-tremble

I hug myself, the pain

of never-ending war

 

Yellow Moon, 16, Summer 2004

Kirsty Karkow

Chinese Translation (Traditional)

雪花紛飛

窗戶中我的影像

顫抖不已

我緊抱自己, 承受

永無止境的戰爭所帶來的痛苦

Chinese Translation (Simplified)

雪花纷飞

窗户中我的影像

颤抖不已

我紧抱自己, 承受

永无止境的战争所带来的痛苦

Bio Sketch

Kirsty Karkow lived in Waldoboro, Maine, where she wrote haiku, sijo, tanka, and other short forms. Lyrical, poignant, and spare, her poetry reflected a rich and deep sense of place and spirit. Her haiku have won the Mainichi and the R.H Blyth Award and placed in other contests. And she had two best-selling books in print: water poems: haiku, tanka and sijo and shorelines: haiku, haibun and tanka , published by Black Cat Press.

Biting NOT Barking: Explosion and Echo Haiku by Natalia Kuznetsova

English Original

explosion

of autumn colours ...

echo of war

 

Under the Basho Journal, 2022

Natalia Kuznetsova

Chinese Translation (Traditional)

短暫卻又絢爛

的秋色 ...

戰爭的迴響

Chinese Translation (Simplified) 

短暂却又绚烂

的秋色 ...

战争的回响

Bio Sketch

Living in Moscow, Russia, Natalia Kuznetsova is a teacher of English and freelance interpreter. Before discovering the haiku world, she wrote poetry in Russian. She started writing tanka and mostly haiku in English in 2007, and participated in numerous competitions worldwide and won some awards. She contributes regularly to World Haiku Review, Asahi Haikuist Network, Daily Haiku, Poetry Pea and other traditional and on-line publications. She was included on the list of "European Top 100 Most Creative Haiku Authors" from 2010 to 2023.

Biting NOT Barking: Dragon-Shaped Cloud Haiku by Barbara Sabol

English Original

charred earth

a dragon-shaped cloud

breathes smoke

Under the Bashō , May 17, 2022

Barbara Sabol

Chinese Translation (Traditional)

燒焦的土地

龍形雲朵

噴吐著煙霧

Chinese Translation (Simplified)

烧焦的土地

龙形云朵

喷吐着烟雾

Bio Sketch

Barbara Sabol’s most recent collection, Connections: core & all, was published by Bird Dog Press in 2022. She is the associate editor of Sheila-Na-Gig online. Barbara conducts poetry workshops through Literary Cleveland. She lives in Akron, Ohio with her husband and wonder dogs. 

Biting NOT Barking: One-Legged Boy Haiku by Djurdja Vukelic Rozic

English Original

a stork in its nest

and a boy in the yard

standing on one leg

D.V. Rožić: Under the Wing of a White Stork, 2016 

Djurdja Vukelic Rozic

Chinese Translation (Traditional)

一隻鸛鳥在巢裡

一個男孩在院子

只能單腳站立

Chinese Translation (Simplified)

一只鹳鸟在巢里

一个男孩在院子

只能单脚站立

Bio Sketch

Djurdja Vukelic Rozic was born in 1956, lives in the town of Ivanic Grad, Croatia, edits the magazine IRIS, translates and writes poetry, humorous sketches, short stories, haiku and haibun. So far she has published twenty books and translated a number of collections and anthologies into English. And her poetry has received thirty awards.

Biting NOT Barking: Battle Haiku by Masaoka Shiki

English Original

the pear blossoming 

after the battle 

this ruined house

The Haiku Handbook, 1985

Masaoka Shiki

Chinese Translation (Traditional)

梨花盛開

戰後

這棟 破敗的房子

Chinese Translation (Simplified)

梨花盛开

战后

这栋 破败的房子

 

Bio Sketch

Masaoka Shiki (October 14, 1867 -- September 19, 1902) was a Japanese poet and literary critic in Meiji period Japan. Shiki is regarded as a major figure in the development of modern haiku, and he also published articles on the reform of tanka. Some scholars and poets consider Shiki to be one of the four great haiku masters, the others being Matsuo Bashō, Yosa Buson, and Kobayashi Issa.

Biting NOT Barking: Small Girl and Shadows Haiku by Michael McClintock

English Original

a small girl ...

the shadows stroke

and stroke her

Maya, 1975

Michael McClintock

Chinese Translation (Traditional)

一個小女孩 ...

一幫陰影撫摸

撫摸著她

Chinese Translation (Simplified)

一个小女孩 ...

一帮阴影抚摸

抚摸着她

Bio Sketch

Michael McClintock's lifework in haiku, tanka, and related literature spanned over four decades. His many contributions to the field included six years as president of the Tanka Society of America (2004-2010) and contributing editor, essayist, and poet for dozens of journals, anthologies, landmark collections and critical studies. McClintock lived in Clovis, California, where he worked as an independent scholar, consultant for public libraries, and poet. Meals at Midnight [tanka], Sketches from the San Joaquin [haiku] and Streetlights: Poetry of Urban Life in Modern English Tanka, were some of his recent titles.

Biting NOT Barking: Dry Creekbed Haiku by Simon Hanson

English Original

bleached bones

a dry creekbed

filled with shadow

Desert Stones, 2018

  

Simon Hanson 

Chinese Translation (Traditional)

褪色的骨頭

乾涸的河床

充滿陰影

Chinese Translation (Simplified)

褪色的骨头

干涸的河床

充满阴影

Bio Sketch

Simon Hanson lives in forested Tasmania in the company of animals and birds and the sounds of a trickling creek. Formerly Secretary to the Australian Haiku Society he is currently co-editor of Echidna Tracks. He has an e-book collection; Desert Stones (Snapshot Press) freely available here for you.