a turnstile
going around by itself --
winter rain
Honorable Mention, 2018 Harold G. Henderson Haiku Awards
Barry George
Chinese Translation (Traditional)
一扇旋轉柵門
自己不停地轉動 --
冬雨
Chinese Translation (Simplified)
一扇旋转栅门
自己不停地转动 --
冬雨
Bio Sketch
Barry George is the author of Wrecking Ball and Other Urban Haiku and The One That Flies Back, a chapbook of tanka. A regular contributor to haiku journals, he lives and teaches in Philadelphia.
“Winter rain” sets the mood through which we interpret the strong image of a turnstile doing what a turnstile usually does, but without the usual human interaction. The image captivates the poet and it captivates us, too. Almost animate, the turnstile might evoke a sense of pathos. The poet has left significant space for reader interpretation. Could this turnstile be a symbol of the way that we, too, may sometimes follow habitual routines just to feel we have a purpose, to fill in time, keep going, keep warm or ward off loneliness? Strangely, this haiku about a turnstile, a thing, evokes much of the less acknowledged aspects of human life. -- excerpted from the judge's commentary, accessed at http://www.hsa-haiku.org/hendersonawards/henderson-judges2018.htm
ReplyDeleteIt might be interesting to make a comparative reading of my haiku below:
Deletea latch clicks
on the vacant house ...
winter solstice
The Heron's Nest, 18:1, March 2016
Chen-ou Liu