Special Feature: Selected Poems for Reflections on Chinese New Year of the Fire Horse

My Dear Readers:

Today, the 2026 Lunar New Year welcomes the Year of the Fire Horse—a rare, high-energy convergence in the 60-year zodiac cycle, uniting the dynamic Yang Fire element with the Horse’s innate qualities of speed, independence, and fierce passion. It is a year charged with momentum and transformation, opening wide the door to bold, self-directed action. Yet such intensity carries its own cautions: the risk of burnout, volatility, and sudden upheaval.

I would like to share with you the following new year reflection poems:

Personal:

I run with the horse

toward sunlight through storm clouds

new year's dream, yet lives

Geopolitical: 

Bloody New Year

war news on mute ...

I scream into the dark

yet the night

swallows my fury

in snow-shrouded stillness

No blue sky, no green field — only snow falling. This sound of white on white. The day goes on ...

It is the best of years; it is the worst of years; it is the age of wisdom; it is the age of foolishness; it is the epoch of belief; it is the epoch of incredulity; it is the season of light; it is the season of darkness; it is the spring of hope; it is the winter of despair. We have everything before us, and we have nothing before us.

— Paraphrased from Charles Dickens, A Tale of Two Cities

Added:

New Year noodles

slip off my chopsticks ...

eating alone,

this bittersweet taste

of hometown memories

Added:

I color-code

my New Year's to-do-list

snow on snow ...

Added:

at China Gala

robot after robot lunges

backflips, spins around

jumps, dances to Happy New Year ...

my silence, cold as steel

FYI: The Guardian, Feb. 18 2026:  China’s dancing robots: how worried should we be?

Eye-catching martial arts performance at China gala had viewers and experts wondering what else humanoids can do

Developed by several Chinese robotics firms, the robots performed a range of intricate stunts, including kung fu, comedy sketches and choreographed dance moves alongside human performers.

Clips circulating online quickly drew comparisons with last year’s lunar new year broadcast, which also featured dancing robots but with noticeably simpler movements.

Butterfly Dream: New Year Haiku by Gareth Nurden

English Original

new year

misty morning breath

of an old car

Gareth Nurden

Chinese Translation (Traditional)

新年清晨

一輛老舊汽車排放出

薄霧般的廢氣

Chinese Translation (Simplified)

新年清晨

一辆老旧汽车排放出

薄雾般的废气

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. 

Special Feature: Selected Poems for End-of-Year Reflections

My Dear Readers:

Today marks the last day of 2025, a year lived dangerously—or precariously—for countless people around the world.

written in response to The Guardian, December 31: Sydney New Year’s Eve strikes sombre tone as fireworks follow minute’s silence for Bondi Beach Victims

"Peace, Unity"

lit on the bridge’s high pylon

while Sydney pauses ...

rainbow flowers of light

bloom in the midnight sky

Chen-ou Liu

(FYI: The Pacific island nations of Tonga, Samoa, and Kiribati are the first to ring in the New Year. New Zealand is next, followed by Australia, Japan, and South Korea)

I offer the following haiku, tanka, and remarks as invitations to imagination and reflection, in the hope of ringing out the old and the harmful, and welcoming what is new and still becoming.

The ending of a year is like closing a window. Even though it is shut, fresh light will still shine through.

-- Jennifer L. Betts

loneliness

after the fireworks

a falling star 

Masaoka Shiki

firework-lit skies ...

each year different, yet

each year the same

Chen-ou Liu

the new year

begins with sky rockets

like them

who can tell

where we will land

Beverley George

Year’s end is neither an end nor a beginning but a going on, with all the wisdom that experience can instill in us.

-- Hal Borland

last day of the year

poems I could have written ...

a bulbul follows

drifting leaves

to the stone cairn

Sonam Chhoki

a fresh leaf

white in the winter

of a new year;

it seems a shame

to mar it with words

M. Kei

For last year’s words belong to last year’s language. And next year’s words await another voice.

-- T.S. Eliot

New Year’s Day

looking back I am lonely

as an autumn evening

Basho

new year saké ...

the gradual dimming

of your flaws

Roberta Beary 

first sunrise

of the year

the unexpected journey

of a child

from her womb

Ernesto P. Santiago 

New Year’s Day is every man’s birthday.

-- Charles Lamb

To conclude today's "Special Feature" post, I would like to share with the following haiku sequence about my reflection on this coming new year, 2026 and Michael Altshule's New Year remark.

Old and New, New ... Then Old ?

home alone

I listen to the snowlight

from last year

another new year

I meet the stranger’s gaze

in the mirror

the same resolution

with a different weight

first sunrise tinged gray

New Year’s fireworks …

the room quiet before

quieter after

The bad news is time flies. The good news is you’re the pilot.

-- Michael Altshuler

All the best for New Year, 2026

Chen-ou

Added: 

On the Threshold

firework-lit skies ...

each year the same, and yet

each year different

first sunrise gleaming 

I high-five my reflection

in the new mirror

Butterfly Dream: New Year's Day Haiku by Masaoka Shiki

English Original

New Year's Day

dead chrysanthemums still

at the garden's edge

Haiku: Ancient and Modern, 2002

Masaoka Shiki

Chinese Translation (Traditional)

元旦

枯死的菊花依然

在花園的邊緣

Chinese Translation (Simplified)

元旦

枯死的菊花依然

在花园的边缘

 

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.

One Man's Maple Moon: New Year's Eve Tanka by Lavana Kray

English Original

only few left

to hug on New Year's Eve --

two reflections

in the cracked window,

Mt. Fuji and the old man

Excellence, the Nineth Mt. Fuji Tanka Contest,  2024

Lavana Kray

Chinese Translation (Traditional)

只有少數人留下

在除夕夜相互擁抱 --

兩個映影

在破裂的窗戶裡, 

富士山和一位老人

Chinese Translation (Simplified)

只有少数人留下

在除夕夜相互拥抱 --

两个映影

在破裂的窗户里,

富士山和一位老人

 

Bio Sketch

Lavana Kray lives in Romania. Her work has appeared in many print and online publications, as well as in haiga exhibitions organized by the World Haiku Association in Japan and Italy. In 2015 this Association awarded her the title of Master Haiga Artist. Her photo-haiku have been featured in NHK Haiku Masters on Japanese TV . The Laval Literary Society from Canada  awarded her the André-Jacob-Entrevous Prize 2023, for a literary text (haiku) combined with an artistic visual. She currently serves as Haiga Editor at Cattails Journal (UHTS). See more of her work at https://photohaikuforyou.blogspot.com.

One Man's Maple Moon: New Year's Eve Tanka by Angelo B. Ancheta

English Original

the column of sparks 

from the fountain rises 

on New Year's eve 

how do I start this time 

with an end

Angelo B. Ancheta

Chinese Translation (Traditional)

倒映的一柱煙火

從噴水池中升起

除夕夜

在歲末的時刻

我該如何開始新的一年

Chinese Translation (Simplified)

倒映的一柱烟火

从喷水池中升起

除夕夜

在岁末的时刻

我该如何开始新的一年

Bio Sketch

Angelo B. Ancheta lives in Rizal, Philippines. His haiku and other poems have appeared in various journals and anthologies both in print and online. He also writes fiction, some of which have won prizes in contests. He believes that writing complements object-oriented programming, which he does in daytime.

Butterfly Dream: New Year's Sky Haiku by Marion Clarke

English Original

New Year's sky

seeking that first

ray of light

Marion Clarke 

Chinese Translation (Traditional)

新年的天空

搜尋那第一道

陽光

Chinese Translation (Simplified)

新年的天空

搜寻那第一道

阳光

Bio Sketch

Marion Clarke is from the east coast of Northern Ireland. Growing up surrounded by the scenic shores of Carlingford Lough, the Mourne Mountains and Kilbroney Forest Park,  she was destined to write haiku.

Special Feature: Selected Poems for Year-End Reflections

My Dear Readers/Fellow Poets:

Today is the last day of 2023, a year of living dangerously for many people around the world. According to the Geneva Academy, there are more than 110 armed conflicts in the world. The economic stresses and sociopolitical instability these conflicts and financial policies have caused are enormous.

I would like to share with you the following haiku and tanka for your imagination and reflections, in the hope of ringing out the old/bad and ringing in the new/changing.

I look at the sky

having lost another year ...

midnight fireworks

Chen-ou liu

This Brave New World, CXXXV 

firework after firework

as the clock has struck midnight

rainbow flowers

light up Toronto's sky

unlike the one over Gaza

Chen-ou Liu

loneliness

after the fireworks

a falling star 

New Year's Day

dead chrysanthemums still

at the garden's edge

Masaoka Shiki

my home town

in a new year's dream

tears

Issa

This Brave New World, CXXXVI

for 12-year-old Palestinian girl, Layan Abu Kuwaik

my home town

in a new year's dream

sun-dappled hills

Chen-ou Liu

FYI: Democracy Now, Jan.2 : Death Toll in Gaza Tops 22,000 as Biden Bypasses Congress to Send More Munitions to Israel

...God willing, in 2024, I wish when I wake up on January 1st to discover that this was all a dream, to wake up at home on January 1st, for the war to end, for our suffering to end, for this tragedy to end...

This Brave New World, CXXXVII

another year

amidst screaming sirens ...

sunflowers

on the bomb shelter wall

no longer noticed

Chen-ou Liu

New Year’s Day

looking back I am lonely

as an autumn evening

Basho

first dream of the new year:

we buy back our wedding rings 

from the pawn shop 

Steliana Cristina Voicu

in five-seven-five

I compact confusing thoughts ...

New Year's morning dew

Damir Janjalija

the new year

begins with sky rockets

like them

who can tell

where we will land

Beverley George

All the best for the new year ahead

Chen-ou

Added: This Brave New World, CXXXVIII

air raid sirens ...

Ukraine is alive, Ukraine fights

again at sunrise

FYI: Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky's New Year Address: Ukraine is alive. Ukraine lives. Ukraine fights. Ukraine advances, Ukraine overcomes the path. Ukraine gains. Ukraine works. Ukraine exists. And all together, this is not a New Year's miracle, not a fairy tale, not magic, but the merit of each of you.

Added: reading between the lives and writing between the lines, LXXXI

anything new?

the Christmas tree off

to be mulched

and the champagne gone flat 

after New Year's fireworks

FYI: This could be read as a sequel to the following:

shelling peas --

each passing year

like the one before

tinywords, Dec. 29 2023

Sanjuktaa

Added: This Brave New World, CXXXIX

written in response to Barbie, the highest-grossing film of 2023

home, sweet home

in a new year's dream

pink-lit Barbie Land

Butterfly Dream: New Year Haiku by vincent tripi

English Original

her only nipple 

begins to harden 

a new year

Edge of Light, 2003

vincent tripi 

Chinese Translation (Traditional)

她唯一的乳頭

開始變硬了

新的一年

Chinese Translation (Simplified)

她唯一的乳头

开始变硬了

新的一年

Bio Sketch

Founder of The Haiku Circle, vincent tripi was closely associated with the spiritual movement in American Haiku. He wrote haiku for over 35 years, and published 14 books of haiku. Most of his haiku reflect a Buddhist foundation.

Special Feature: Selected Haiku and Tanka for the New Year Ahead

                                                                                                  Three Hundred and Fifty-Seventh Entry, Coronavirus Poetry Diary

                                                                      smiling faces

                                                                      in these little cages

                                                                      year-end Zoom meeting

                                                                      Chen-ou Liu

My Dear Readers/Fellow Poets:

Today is the last day of 2022, a year of living dangerously. Share with you the following haiku and tanka in the hope of ringing out the old/bad and ringing in the new/changing. And a gentle reminder for everyone: Life is change, but growth is optional.

last day of the year

poems I could have written ...

a bulbul follows

drifting leaves

to the stone cairn

Sonam Chhoki

wall-to-wall bookshelves ...

I put away 

the old year

Marion Clarke 

a fresh leaf 

white in the winter 

of a new year; 

it seems a shame 

to mar it with words 

M. Kei

how it shines

white on the ground

the fresh snow ...

I will step 

into this new year

Kozue Uzawa

new year saké ...

the gradual dimming

of your flaws

Roberta Beary

first dream of the new year:

we buy back our wedding rings 

from the pawn shop 

Steliana Cristina Voicu

 

To conclude today's post, the last one of this year of living dangerously, I would like to share with you the following poem:

Three Hundred and Fifty-Eighth Entry, Coronavirus Poetry Diary

written in response to the explosion of COVID-19 cases in China

rain mixed with snow

as the tridemic surges

this new year's eve

darkness flickers around

the edge of my quarantined mind

FYI: The "tridemic" is the combination of three respiratory virals, Flu, coronavirus 2 (SARS‑CoV‑2),  and RSV, that have  overwhelmed North American health care systems for weeks. However, to the best of my knowledge, there is no "public health" measure, such as mask mandate, legally required (not recommended) in indoor spaces across all major cities in North America. 

Added:

one Pope left ...

remains of this Buffalo church

buried in snow

FYI: At least 39 people have died as a result of the extreme weather, with the region in and around storm-besieged Buffalo, New York state, emerging as ground zero for an Arctic deep freeze. For more, see ABC 13 News., Dec. 29: Buffalo, NY storm death toll rises to 39 as roads reopen, search for victims across area continues 

And Rolling Stone, Dec., 31: Pope Benedict XVI, a Staunch Traditionalist Surrounded by Scandal, Dead at 95

Benedict’s papal tenure was also tumultuous. Just months before before his retirement, Benedict’s former butler was convicted in a Vatican court of stealing and leaking confidential documents that had exposed corruption, cronyism, and infighting throughout the Vatican. Additionally, Benedict was heavily criticized for not doing enough to address the sex abuse crisis in the Catholic Church during his papacy.

And The Conversation, Dec. 31: Pope Benedict XVI: A man at odds with the modern world who leaves a legacy of intellectual brilliance and controversy

After his election, Pope Benedict XVI had to confront a growing sexual abuse scandal in the Catholic Church. While a cardinal, he had publicly downplayed the extent and seriousness of the crisis. And it was under his leadership that The Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith decided not to remove Lawrence C. Murphy from the priesthood, even though Murphy had been accused of molesting more than 200 boys at a Catholic school for the deaf in Wisconsin.

Benedict did not move to open Vatican records to public investigation, and he also failed to discipline cardinals and bishops who reassigned pedophile priests.

Most recently, a January 2022 report on sexual abuse in the diocese of Munich criticized Ratzinger’s “inaction” regarding four cases of sexual abuse during his period as archbishop from 1977 to 1982. In reaction to the report, the pope emeritus apologized but did not admit to any administrative failures.

Added:

burned in a car fire ...

months later under first sunrise

a new face 

One Man's Maple Moon: Fresh Snow and New Year Tanka by Kozue Uzawa

English Original

how it shines

white on the ground

the fresh snow ...

I will step 

into this new year

I’m a Traveller, 2011

Kozue Uzawa

 

Chinese Translation (Traditional)

剛下過的雪

在地上它是多麼

白花花地閃耀 ...

我將步入

這個新的一年

Chinese Translation (Simplified)

刚下过的雪

在地上它是多么

白花花地闪耀 ...

我将步入

这个新的一年

 

 

Bio Sketch

Kozue Uzawa is a retired university professor. She works as editor of the English tanka journal GUSTS. She composes tanka both in Japanese and English. She also translates Japanese tanka into English and co-published Ferris Wheel: 101 Modern and Contemporary Tanka (Boston: Cheng & Tsui, 2006), and Kaleidoscope: Selected Tanka of Shuji Terayama (Tokyo: Hokuseido Press, 2008). Ferris Wheel received the 2007 Donald Keene Translation Award for Japanese Literature from Columbia University.

A Room of My Own: Time Beast Tanka

written on the last day of this surreal year, 2021

I lift my leg high

as the Time Beast approaches ...

kick after kick

at the snowy darkness

until it bleeds daylight

FYI: Ls 1&3  allude to the fierce Bruce Lee kicks. See this 7-minute supercut of every Bruce Lee kick in film.

Added: Two Hundred and Ninety-Ninth Entry, Coronavirus Poetry Diary

curbside pickup

of dinner for one

a stray's stare

Butterfly Dream: Ring Haiku by Laurence Stacey

English Original

year finally over
I scrub a ring
from the tub

tinywords, 15:1, 18 February 2015

Laurence Stacey

 

 

Chinese Translation (Traditional)

一年終於過去

使用浴缸的邊緣

擦洗我的戒指

 

Chinese Translation (Simplified)

一年终于过去

使用浴缸的边缘

擦洗我的戒指

 

Bio Sketch

Laurence Stacey is an adjunct professor of Peace Studies at Kennesaw State University.

One Man's Maple Moon: Year of the Ox Tanka by Carol Jones

English Original

curls of earth

turned by the plough

in a once-barren field

we offer toil, tears and sweat

this year of the ox

Carol Jones


Chinese Translation (Traditional)

犁過的田地

帶有捲曲的泥土

今年是牛年 

在曾經荒蕪的田野

我們提供勞苦, 淚水和汗水

Chinese Translation (Simplified)

犁过的田地

带有卷曲的泥土

今年是牛年

在曾经荒芜的田野

我们提供劳苦, 泪水和汗水 

Bio Sketch

Carol Jones lives and works on a farm in one of the South Wales valleys, UK. Although she hasn't the time to get involved in the wider environmental issues, she does document her own environment as she goes about her work.

Butterfly Dream: Year of the Ox Haiku by Hifsa Ashraf

English Original

year of the Ox 

avoiding 

the scarlet sky 

Asahi Haikuist Network, January 29 2021

Hifsa Ashraf


Chinese Translation (Traditional)

牛年

避免凝視

血紅色的天空 

Chinese Translation (Simplified)

牛年

避免凝视

血红色的天空 

Bio Sketch

Hifsa Ashraf is from Pakistan. She is a lecturer and HR consultant by profession. She writes short stories, columns, and poetry in different languages. Her poetry has been published in various online journals. Her short stories have been published in a UK-based English magazine.

Butterfly Dream: Wall-to-Wall Bookshelves Haiku by Marion Clarke

English Original

wall-to-wall bookshelves ...

I put away 

the old year

Marion Clarke 


Chinese Translation (Traditional)

從牆壁連接到牆壁的書架 ...

我收起

舊的一年

Chinese Translation (Simplified)

从墙壁连接到墙壁的书架 ...

我收起

旧的一年

Bio Sketch

Marion Clarke is from the east coast of Northern Ireland. Growing up surrounded by the scenic shores of Carlingford Lough, the Mourne Mountains and Kilbroney Forest Park,  she was destined to write haiku.

Special Feature: Selected Poems for "New" Year

My Dear Readers/Fellow Poets:

Today is the first day of 2021. Share with you the following poems to ring out the old and ring in the new: Life is change, but growth is optional.

the column of sparks 

from the fountain rises 

on New Year's eve 

how do I start this time 

with an end

Angelo B. Ancheta

last day of the year

poems I could have written ...

a bulbul follows

drifting leaves

to the stone cairn

Sonam Chhoki

a fresh leaf 

white in the winter 

of a new year; 

it seems a shame 

to mar it with words 

M. Kei

in five-seven-five

I compact confusing thoughts ...

New Year's morning dew

Damir Janjalija

first sunrise

of the year

the unexpected journey

of a child

from her womb

Ernesto P. Santiago 

new year saké ...

the gradual dimming

of your flaws

Roberta Beary 

To conclude today's New Year post, the following two poems, one tanka and one haiku sequence, reveal my view of this coming year:  "celebrants" and "survivors" usher in a new year:

on Brexit Day

snow with brief sleet ... (note: Today's weather in London)

a masked old man

holding freedom

in his bony hand

The End of the Beginning

to Trump Party faithfuls, including Trump himself and the Trumps in the wall-to-wall mirrors of his presidential suite in the Trump Tower.

dying of the year

his face shadowed by the brim

of a MAGA hat

new year's clean-up

a pile of Four More Years

dumped on the curbside

2024 run 

in a world of falling snow

the sound of wind

Added: Day 2 of Brexit, a sequel to "Brexit Day" tanka:

a Brexiteer

beneath slate-grey skies (note: Today's weather in London)

his drunken shadow 

Butterfly Dream: New Year's Eve Haiku by Natalia Kuznetsova

English Original

snowbound pines
glimmer against starry skies --
New Year’s Eve

Oku-no-hosomichi Soka Matsubara International Competition, 2020

Natalia Kuznetsova


Chinese Translation (Traditional)

大雪覆蓋的松樹

在星空之下閃閃發光 --

除夕夜

Chinese Translation (Simplified)

大雪覆盖的松树

在星空之下闪闪发光 --

除夕夜

Bio Sketch

Living in Moscow, Russia, Natalia Kuznetsova is an assistant professor of English and freelance interpreter. Before discovering the haiku world, she wrote poetry in Russian. She started writing tanka and mostly haiku in English several years ago, and participated in numerous competitions worldwide and won some awards. She now contributes regularly to World Haiku Review, Mainichi Daily, Asahi Haikuist Network, Shiki Kukai and other traditional and on-line publications. She was included on the list of "European Top 100 Most Creative Haiku Authors" from 2010 to 2013.

Butterfly Dream: Year of the Rat Haiku by Carol Jones

English Original

drawn to his charm
and rugged good-looks ...
year of the rat

Carol Jones


Chinese Translation (Traditional)

被他的魅力
和粗曠的外貌吸引 ...
鼠年新年

Chinese Translation (Simplified)

被他的魅力
和粗旷的外貌吸引...
鼠年新年 


Bio Sketch

Carol Jones lives and works on a farm in one of the South Wales valleys, UK. Although she hasn't the time to get involved in the wider environmental issues, she does document her own environment as she goes about her work.

A Room of My Own: Ring out the "old year" of the pig, ring in the "new year" of the rat

doomsday clock
moved to one hundred seconds
to midnight
I hear the sharp snap
of a rattrap

in the dying hour
of an old year
I feel like a rat
caught between illusion
and biting reality

FYI: "The Doomsday Clock was moved the closest it's ever been to midnight on Jan. 23 as atomic scientists warned of increasing threats around nuclear war and climate change..."