English Original
hazelnut picking
the child in a memory puts
my hand to the moon
Honourable Mention, Autumn Moon Haiku Contest 2021
Alan Summers
Chinese Translation (Traditional)
採摘榛子
記憶中的孩子
將我的手伸向月亮
Chinese Translation (Simplified)
采摘榛子
记忆中的孩子
将我的手伸向月亮
Bio Sketch
Alan Summers is founder of Call of the Page, and editor-in-chief of three journals: Blo͞o Outlier Journal, MahMight Haiku Journal, and Babylon Sidedoor. He is surrounded by cats, who often find their way in from an insecure attic window!
The followinfg is excerpted from "To the Lighthouse: The Unseen Go-Between in Haiku by Alan Summers," accessed at https://neverendingstoryhaikutanka.blogspot.com/2023/04/to-lighthouse-unseen-go-between-in-haiku.html
ReplyDelete5. Aspect-to-aspect is unique in that it shows different things occurring simultaneously within the same scene.
First of all the ‘aspect-to-aspect’ transition originates from Japanese manga and animé, to evoke a mood gently stimulating focus on ‘just being there' rather than the ‘goal orientated process of getting there’...
hazelnut picking
the child in a memory puts
my hand to the moon
...It’s the Fall, and alongside the main feature of leaves turning colour, and eventually falling, is the various nuts that squirrels prize, and some humans too! September and October are the main months for hazelnuts, and we once used to forage for them, partly to save money, partly as a family outing, or as youngsters enjoying free snacks as we play games outside. And it was all free, fresh air and exercise, and a great walk into the green outdoors rather than driving around and then entering a supermarket to buy things that hung on trees.
This is all about being part of nature, and a hazelnut picking activity. One activity but two aspects, the now (present) and “then” (past). We were all once children, perhaps this is a universal child, or one that really got into the spirit when we didn’t. Now that memory comes back and that child is helping me to enjoy the simple and free things again.
This haiku achieves a beautiful, dreamlike resonance, pivoting effortlessly from the grounded act of hazelnut picking in L 1 to a vast, celestial image in L 3. Rather than merely describing a recollection, L 2 subtly embodies memory, making it feel physical and immediate.
DeleteFurthermore, L 3, "puts / my hand to the moon," effectively expands a small, intimate childhood gesture into a profound, cosmic connection.