One Man's Maple Moon: Fruit Tanka by Kala Ramesh

English Original

mother laments

being old and bent

I see her

as a curved branch

laden with fruit  

the unseen arc, 2017  

Kala Ramesh 

Chinese Translation (Traditional) 

母親感嘆

年老體衰

我瞅見她

如同一條彎曲的枝條

掛滿果實

Chinese Translation (Simplified) 

母亲感叹

年老体衰

我瞅见她

如同一条弯曲的枝条

挂满果实

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.

Butterfly Dream: Old Age Home Haiku by John Richard Stephens

English Original

dry leaves skip

along the dirt road --

old age home

the Asahi Shimbun, September 19, 2025

John Richard Stephens

Chinese Translation (Traditional)

枯葉沿著泥路

隨風跳動 --

養老院

Chinese Translation (Simplified)

枯叶沿着泥路

随风跳动 --

养老院

Bio Sketch

John Richard Stephens has been an author for most of his life, and when he takes a break from writing, he enjoys the challenge of composing haiku. His 25 published books are on various topics—mostly history and fiction anthologies—but so far none are on poetry. For more of his work, visit www.JohnRichardStephens.com

Butterfly Dream: Nursing Home Haiku by Kelly Sargent

English Original

nursing home

rosy-cheeked

in the frame

Presence, 73, 2022

Kelly Sargent

Chinese Translation (Traditional)

養老院

一個相框裡

的紅潤臉頰

Chinese Translation (Simplified)

养老院

一个相框里

的红润脸颊

Bio Sketch

Kelly Sargent is a widely-published poet and the author of Bookmarks (Red Moon Press, 2023), a collection of haiku and senryu. Honors in 2022 and 2023 include: The Touchstone Awards for Individual Poems (nomination),The H. Gene Murtha Memorial Senryu Contest (honorable mention), Golden Haiku Poetry Contest (recognition), and The Mukai Haiku Festival Poetry Competition (winner).

Butterfly Dream: Aging Haiku by Robert Epstein

English Original

aging in place

I run circles around

the crescent moon

Robert Epstein

Chinese Translation (Traditional)

居家養老

繞著蛾眉月我跑

一圈又一圈

Chinese Translation (Simplified)

居家养老

绕着蛾眉月我跑

一圈又一圈

Bio Sketch

Robert Epstein, a psychologist and haiku poet/anthologist, lives and works in the San Francisco Bay Area. He has edited four anthologies:  The Breath of Surrender; Dreams Wander On; The Temple Bell Stops; and Now This.  He has written two books of haiku:  A Walk Around Spring Lake; and Checkout Time is Noon, as well as a chapbook titled, What My Niece Said in His Head:  Haiku and Senryu

Reading More and Writing Better: Tower Cranes Tanka by Chen-ou Liu

written on Labor Day

a gray-haired worker

takes another sip of coffee

from his thermos ...

tower crane after tower crane

against the twilight skyline

FYI: This tanka is inspired by PBS's 14-minute documentary, City of Cranes, a film that "provides a unique perspective on urban construction by focusing on the lives and experiences of crane operators. The term can also metaphorically refer to cities with a high density of construction cranes, such as Toronto, which has frequently ranked highest in North America for its number of tower cranes." 

A Room of My Own: Old Blues Singer Haiku

old blues singer

on a Bourbon Street corner

tourists come and go

FYI: The heart of the French Quarter, Bourbon Street is the most well-known street in New Orleans. And it might be interesting to do a thematic comparison reading of my blues haiku below:

Harlem blues

a saxophone note

lengthens the night

German Translation by Chrysanthemum Editorial Team

Harlem Blues

ein Saxophonton

verlängert die Nacht

Chrysanthemum, 21, Spring 2011

Added:

I end

in my shadow

No Exit

Added:

war news on mute

dandelions just tall enough 

for me to cut down

Added:

cutting a melon ...

a trickle of red juice

along the blade

A Room of My Own: No-Bullshit Air Tanka

Yellowing Memories, VI

first class reunion:

each one looks almost the same

just older,

except this bully-turned-priest

with a no-bullshit air

FYI: My tanka below could be read as its sequel:

returning home

after the class reunion

in the bathroom mirror

the same old me

and yet . . .

Atlas Poetica, 38, 2019

Added: Trump Empire, Inc, XLVI

phalanx after phalanx

of ICE-hatted alligators ...

this daymare, and yet

FYI: The Tyee, July 16: 2025: ‘Alligator Alcatraz’ and Trump’s Celebration of Cruelty: How visual symbols are being weaponized to create terror and hate.

The United States government recently opened a massive immigrant detention facility built deep within the Florida Everglades that’s been dubbed “Alligator Alcatraz.” White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said during a media briefing that “there is only one road leading in… and the only way out is a one-way flight.”

...Apparently designed to be an immigration deterrence and a display of cruelty, Alligator Alcatraz is much more than infrastructure. It is visual policy aimed to stage terror as a message while making Trump’s authoritarian and fascist politics a material reality...

Added: Trump Empire, Inc, XLVII

faded Trump graffiti

my pitbull 

cocks its leg

Added: Trump Empire, Inc, XLVIII

Trump fan and foe

face to face with fists raised

in sunburned silence

at the anti/rally

their cars bumper-kiss

Added:

Trump news on mute

an alley stray barks

another answers

One Man's Maple Moon: Ring Marks Tanka by M. Kei

English Original

ring marks 

in the swollen knuckle ... 

a little more

middle age

this morning

Lyrical Passion Poetry E-Zine, 2012-13

M. Kei

Chinese Translation (Traditional)

腫脹手指關節

的戒指環狀痕跡 ...

今天早晨

看起來更像是

中年男人

Chinese Translation (Simplified)

肿胀手指关节

的戒指环状痕迹 ...

今天早晨

看起来更像是

中年男人

Bio Sketch

M. Kei is a tall ship sailor and award-winning poet who lives on Maryland’s Eastern shore. He is the editor of Atlas Poetica: A Journal of World Tanka. His most recent collection of poetry is January, A Tanka Diary. He is also the author of the award-winning gay Age of Sail adventure novels, Pirates of the Narrow Seas. He can be followed on Twitter @kujakupoet, or visit AtlasPoetica.org.

Butterfly Dream: Nursing Home Haiku by Natalia Kuznetsova

English Original

primroses

at the nursing home

another spring

Asahi Haikuist Network, June 07, 2024

Natalia Kuznetsova

Chinese Translation (Traditional)

安養院

的報春花

又一個春天

Chinese Translation (Simplified) 

安养院

的报春花

又一个春天

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.

One Man's Maple Moon: Kindness Tanka by Marion Alice Poirier

English Original

an old woman

sits on a park bench

counting change --

the kindness of strangers

softens her wrinkled face

Marion Alice Poirier

Chinese Translation (Traditional)

一位老婦人

坐在公園的長椅上

計數零錢 --

陌生人的善意

撫平她佈滿皺紋的臉

    

Chinese Translation (Simplified)

一位老妇人

坐在公园的长椅上

计数零钱 --

陌生人的善意

抚平她布满皱纹的脸

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.

One Man's Maple Moon: Old Age Tanka by George Swede

English Original

entering old age

I look less for truth

but find it more --

a mid-winter thaw reveals

pieces of sky

Poetry That Heals, 2018

George Swede

Chinese Translation (Traditional)

步入老年

我較少探求真相

但發現更多的真相 --

仲冬的解凍揭示了

天空的碎片

Chinese Translation (Simplified)

步入老年

我较少探求真相

但发现更多的真相 --

仲冬的解冻揭示了

天空的碎片

Bio Sketch

George Swede's most recent collections of haiku are Almost Unseen (Decatur, IL: Brooks Books, 2000), Joy In Me Still (Edmonton: Inkling Press, 2010) and micro haiku: three to nine syllables (Inspress, 2014). He is a former editor of Frogpond: Journal of the Haiku Society of America (2008-2012) and a former Honorary Curator of the American Haiku Archives (2008-2009).

One Man's Maple Moon: Old Age Tanka by Naomi Beth Wakan

English Original

to reach an age

when things fall away

unneeded

as spent petals from a flower

as skins of summer snakes

Time Together, 2022

Naomi Beth Wakan

Chinese Translation (Traditional)

到了某個年齡

一切都會凋零

不再被人需要

就像花兒凋謝的花瓣

就像夏天的蛇的蛻皮

Chinese Translation (Simplified)

到了某个年龄

一切都会凋零

不再被人需要

就像花儿凋谢的花瓣

就像夏天的蛇的蜕皮

Bio Sketch

Naomi Beth Wakan is the inaugural Poet Laureate of Nanaimo (2014–16) and the Federation of British Columbia Writer’s Inaugural Honorary Ambassador. She has published over fifty books. Her most recent book of essays, On the Arts, came out in 2020 (Shanti Arts). Her trilogy, The Way of Tanka, The Way of Haiku, and Poetry That Heals was published by Shanti Arts in 2019. Wakan is a member of The League of Canadian Poets, Haiku Canada, and Tanka Canada. She lives on Gabriola Island, British Columbia, Canada, with her husband, the sculptor Elias Wakan.

Butterfly Dream: Aging Starlet Haiku by Margaret Rutley

English Original

aging starlet

lip-syncing

out of sync

Honorable Mention, 2022 HPNC Contest

Margaret Rutley 

Chinese Translation (Traditional)

年邁的新星

對口唱歌

仍然不搭調

Chinese Translation (Simplified)

年迈的新星

对口唱歌

仍然不搭调

Bio Sketch

Margaret Rutley had poetry published in journals and anthologies in Canada, the US, the UK, and New Zealand. She won second place for "The Last Resort," a haiku sequence published in Haiku Canada Review and first place for a Valentine's Haiku Contest. She was a member of Haiku Canada, the Haiku Society of America, and wrote with The Heron's Quill poetry group.

One Man's Maple Moon: Sipping Tea Tanka by Bill Kenney

English Original

sipping tea

sent by a friend

as a birthday gift

I am learning

to grow old

tinywords, 21:1, July 6 ,  2021

Bill Kenney

 

Chinese Translation (Traditional)

喝一口茶

這是朋友寄來

的生日禮物

我在學習

逐漸地衰老

Chinese Translation (Simplified)

喝一口茶

这是朋友寄来

的生日礼物

我在学习

逐渐地衰老

Bio Sketch 

 

Born and raised in the Boston area, and living for over 50 years in New York City, Bill Kenney was a professor for many years in the English Department at Manhattan College. He started writing haiku in 2004, a month before his 72nd birthday, and became an active participant in the New York City Spring Street Haiku group. His haiku were published in numerous journals and anthologies. And his collection of haiku, keep walking, won the 2021 Touchstone Distinguished Book Awards.

Butterfly Dream: Years Together Haiku by Naomi Beth Wakan

English Original

the old body lying

next to my old body ...

our years together

Haiku Canada Review, 16:2, 2022

Naomi Beth Wakan

Chinese Translation (Traditional)

一具衰老的身體

躺在我的衰老身體旁邊 ...

我們在一起的歲月

Chinese Translation (Simplified)

一具衰老的身体

躺在我的衰老身体旁边 ...

我们在一起的岁月

Bio Sketch

Naomi Beth Wakan is the inaugural Poet Laureate of Nanaimo (2014–16) and the Federation of British Columbia Writer’s Inaugural Honorary Ambassador. She has published over fifty books. Her most recent book of essays, On the Arts, came out in 2020 (Shanti Arts). Her trilogy, The Way of Tanka, The Way of Haiku, and Poetry That Heals was published by Shanti Arts in 2019. Wakan is a member of The League of Canadian Poets, Haiku Canada, and Tanka Canada. She lives on Gabriola Island, British Columbia, Canada, with her husband, the sculptor Elias Wakan.

One Man's Maple Moon: Like a Cat Tanka by Kirsty Karkow

English Original

she lived

in later years

like a cat

tiny meals, then naps

on a sofa in the sun

Gusts, 18, Fall/Winter 2013

Kirsty Karkow

Chinese Translation (Traditional)

她在晚年

過著像貓一樣

的生活

少量餐點後, 在陽光下的沙發上

打盹小睡

Chinese Translation (Simplified)

她在晚年

过着像猫一样

的生活

少量餐点后, 在阳光下的沙发上

打盹小睡

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.

One Man's Maple Moon: Wrinkle and Sag Tanka by George Swede

English Original

barber shop mirror

more wrinkle and sag

than i thought

my hair invisible

on the white apron

Arithmetic,  2020

George Swede

Chinese Translation (Traditional)

理髮店鏡子顯示出

比我心中想像

有更多的皺紋和下垂的皮膚

白色圍裙上我的頭髮

白得看不見

Chinese Translation (Simplified)

理发店镜子显示出

比我心中想像

有更多的皱纹和下垂的皮肤

白色围裙上我的头发

白得看不见

Bio Sketch

George Swede's most recent collections of haiku are Almost Unseen (Decatur, IL: Brooks Books, 2000), Joy In Me Still (Edmonton: Inkling Press, 2010) and micro haiku: three to nine syllables (Inspress, 2014). He is a former editor of Frogpond: Journal of the Haiku Society of America (2008-2012) and a former Honorary Curator of the American Haiku Archives (2008-2009).

One Man's Maple Moon: Outdoor Cafe Tanka by George Swede

English Original

outdoor café

a man as old as i

with a smile

that reveals a truce

with sadness 

Arithmetic, 2020

George Swede

Chinese Translation (Traditional)

戶外咖啡館

一個和我一樣老的人

面帶微笑

流露出與他的悲傷

和平相處

Chinese Translation (Simplified)

户外咖啡馆

一个和我一样老的人

面带微笑

流露出与他的悲伤

和平相处

Bio Sketch

George Swede's most recent collections of haiku are Almost Unseen (Decatur, IL: Brooks Books, 2000), Joy In Me Still (Edmonton: Inkling Press, 2010) and micro haiku: three to nine syllables (Inspress, 2014). He is a former editor of Frogpond: Journal of the Haiku Society of America (2008-2012) and a former Honorary Curator of the American Haiku Archives (2008-2009).

Butterfly Dream: Skinny Dipping Haiku by Jane Williams

English Original

skinny dipping

my sister leads me

into my fiftieth year

echoes of flight, 2018

Jane Williams


Chinese Translation (Traditional)

裸泳

我的姐姐引導我

邁入五十歲

Chinese Translation (Simplified)

裸泳

我的姐姐引导我

迈入五十岁

Bio Sketch

Jane Williams is an Australian poet based in Tasmania. To read more of her poetry, please visit her website

One Man's Maple Moon: Summer Bamboo Screen Tanka by Fumi Saito

English Original

though now old

a woman is still a woman

as a breeze

through a summer bamboo screen

comes to visit me

White Letter Poems, 1998

Fumi Saito

Chinese Translation (Traditional)

雖然現在老了

女人畢竟還是女人

當一陣微風

穿過夏日竹屏

來拜訪我

Chinese Translation (Simplified)

虽然现在老了

女人毕竟还是女人

当一阵微风

穿过夏日竹屏

来拜访我

 

 

Bio Sketch

Daughter of a military officer who was noted for his verse-writing talent, Fumi Saito began writing poetry in the traditional 31-syllable tanka form in her early teens. Her first book of tanka, Fish Songs, published in 1940, immediately established her as a brilliant young poet. She was inducted into the Japan Art Academy in 1993 and invited to serve as meshiudo (a position similar to the Poet Laureate's) at the Imperial Palace in 1997.