Picture: Our Geisha

The
Toast Point
Haiku Contest!

Since 1995!

A Japanese Garden of Verse

Entries from February, 1998


You must must must check out the Haiku Error Messages from Salon On Line!

Toast Point writes

Our fourth together
My adorable Wumpus
Still my valentine!

A reader named Haijin sent this to Toast Point:

When I taught oriental poetry I used the following to separate haiku from senryu:

Haiku is about Nature wherein Man is a part - Senryu is about Man (often benevolently humorous) wherein Nature is a part.

We are edified, and thank Haijin for the interest!


Tavi{Hs} writes 03/01/98

Agustin Eastwood
De Mello poetic soul
Making friends with verse

Micah D. Fisher writes 03/01/98

Great spirit winds blow
Suspended in time, life slows
A quiet white dream

The poet comments, "I enjoy my work I hope everyone else does too."

What a wonderful attitude! Have to remember that one...

G.E. Baldwin writes 02/28/98

Gold Star! September morning-
the sound of rain and traffic
beyond the curtains.

Arbuckle writes 02/28/98

The rain comes from above
No cover found from fallen leaves
Now we cover them

The dead berries hang
Fruits from the late summer's past
Still linger like death

People come and go
They do not see me watching
I think of their lives

The poet comments, "So much work to do, yet I stare blindly out the window at the rain and the people going about their lives, and I am lost..."

Glad Green writes 02/28/98

Gold Star! Eyes like winter skies
Storms stir under wrinkled brows
Teardrops fall like rain

The poet comments, "This is my first effort; feedback is welcomed, if possible. thanks - G Green "

Great imagery!

Andy Hede writes 02/28/98

a few simple words
an evocative image
emotion wells up

Gold Star! blackness fades to grey
the dawn stalks a starless sky
reality breaks

maimed child in the snow
bruised petal on white velvet
challenge to conscience

Having just seen the movie version of "Smilla's Sense of Snow", Toast Point is startled by this haiku. What prompted it? Incidentally, the movie is OK, but everyone should read the book.

DeVar writes 02/27/98

I got up early
to grade the English papers...
wrote haiku instead.

The poet comments, "Haiku enthusiasm can sometimes get in the way."

Nonsense. What could be more important?

Gold Star! Under the covers
feet gently touch while reading
love and good books shared.

The poet comments, "Cozy reading. It's great!"

Carefully pressed leaf
rediscovered in old book
forgotten event.

The poet comments, "It is frustrating to forget something you were sure you never would."

Sea Poet writes 02/27/98

Thunder storm coming
wind blowing all the trees down
winter dying hard

Awake all this night
with darkness surrounding me
waiting for dawnlight

Roselee writes 02/27/98

Skiing down the slopes
beginning to raise the speed
exhilaration!!!

Gold Star! Softly evading
the mystical air of dreams
I sleep for the night.

Xavier writes 02/27/98

first through infant lungs
destroyer and preserver
flickering candle

The poet comments, "After seeing a picture of tornado damage"

Evelyn writes 02/26/98

To imitate you,
A life so complete and whole!
To be a young child!

Gold Star! My heart overflows.
Do you dare accept my love?
Do I deserve this?

Tree bends from the wind,
The sun saddened by the clouds.
The clouds cry in pain.

Dustin Best writes 02/26/98

Hear the leaves rustle,
Hear the birds chirping in the trees,
Wonderful they sound.

Hear the waterfall
Cascading over the rocks,
Beautiful thy sound.

The poet comments, "I was in the seventh grade when I wrote this Haiku for an English project on different types of poems. Thank You."

Joe Gill writes 02/26/98

Gold Star! Lying on the sea
Adrift with my eyes closed
My big waterbed

Moonlight photons blast
Blood rushes with energy
Blue night takes control

Scribante writes 02/26/98

Pagan virtues flee.
Harmless snake gets broomstick: "Wham!"
But it's I who die.

John Mulder,the Netherlands writes 02/26/98

The trees are holding
their breath still a little while
Somwhere coo pigeons.

Defenceless lies land
under the lashing rainfall
How come dry's my wash !

D.J. Vanden Langenberg writes 02/26/98

Valentines of love
given to those you cherish
with hugs and kisses

Colored eggs and ham
decorate Easter tables
to please young and old

Marc S. writes 02/26/98

Gold Star! late winter rain -
water twisting and turning
rivers on my windshield

CAVAC writes 02/25/98

get your toast pointed
with a Marshalltown trowel
one piece at a time

The poet comments, "absurdities abound as i build my house of toast"

feather is falling
breezes appoint its motion
to an earthly rest

Gold Star! plump and cherry sweet
a grove land summer bounty
hatching robin eggs

Ruby writes 02/25/98

Gold Star! cold wind of winter
my friend enfolds chilled heart
a warm soul blanket

The poet comments, "to richard"

DeVar writes 02/25/98

Self-reliant cat
finds comfort from drying clothes...
winter laundry day

War time exposure
awakes many years later
asbestos cancer

The poet comments, "My dad was exposed to large amounts of asbestos in the plane he flew during WWII. Fifty years after the fact he is a casualty of the war."

Uma Madhu writes 02/25/98

You smile, my heart thumps,
stomach churns, eyes dance, words fail
Eloquent Silence

Gold Star! You left, my smiles froze
hopes fell, tears sprang, eyes burned
Seasonal Moment

The poet comments, "A colleague writes after reading my works(!?)
Gold Star!
Woman of Terror
Keyboarding silly haiku
Must keep her day job!
Just doing my part to inspire poetry!"

Xavier writes 02/25/98

Reading yesterday
A full-moon through leafless trees
Message from the hawk

Micah D. Fisher writes 02/24/98

Gold Star! Petals of bright shade
fragrance of nature reborn
once again springs here

The poet comments, "I have never done this before - I'm just a regular housewife and mother and it was really different - I hope that you liked it! "

Yes, we did, although your comment reminds us of Fastrada in "Pippin".

Kathy Arias writes 02/24/98

Autumn

Leaves of many hues
Blowing into the soft air
What a chilling sight

Scribante writes 02/24/98

Sun will shine again
Without knowing hów it knows
Crocus trusts it too

The poet comments, ""Consider ye the lilies..." "

Man-slayer mantis
Feigns prayerful temperance
Mating pays for lunch!

The poet comments, "All's fair in love and war! "

Joe Gill writes 02/24/98

Sunshine breaks through clouds
The songs of the wind begin
Trees shake off garments

Spots of sun and shade
A calm stream chimes through the woods
The smell of wild green

Richard Capella writes 02/23/98

Nor'easter nearing
Geese heading north means nothing
Mother Nature rules

Gold Star! Goldfinch at feeder
summer brilliance, winter drab
bright again - it's spring

many tunnels show
upon my lawn as snow melts
voles have been busy

Strange sounds in the night
cacophony as owls seek
answer to question

Marc S. writes 02/23/98

little buds of green
on the old rose bush -
promise of summer bloom

The poet comments, "Thank you for your comments on my "coffee" poem...and i agree totally."

Lela writes 02/22/98

in the green bamboo
the golden-winged butterfly
sleeps, dreaming of flight

Richard Capella writes 02/22/98

February rain
green grass, geese on wing, robins,
best of all, no snow

Mac writes 02/22/98

In our bamboo grove
Chickadees perch one-legged
And cry for summer

Foolish, ancient dog
Dreaming of a fragrant spring
And sweet rabbit terror.

The poet comments, "An extra syllable...but it's a quiet one. : >"

Gold Star! Friday, icy rain
Washes the red brick common
Bums and pigeons bathe.

Lostloon writes 02/21/98

Gold Star! Newly gifted snow
Makes for solid ground and sense
Nurtures seedling sleep

Sae Takada writes 02/21/98

Gold Star! A rosemary sprig
sighs, intoxicated by
its own pungence

The poet comments, "I'm 16 years old, and just starting to gain an interest in poetry. "

Agustin Eastwood De Mello writes 02/20/98

Wind shakes my window
awakening me at night
nightmares seem so real

Write on little pen
create images in verse
winter wind chills me

Rabhairt writes 02/20/98

My life is ice cream
On a warm surface - drooling
and going nowhere...

The poet comments, "I just realised this was a haiku, and I thought I'd never written one before!"

Mel writes 02/20/98

Gold Star! Boss is not here now
on-line hi-jinx fill the day
Monday I will pay

Sketchly writes 02/20/98

driving down the road-
a three-legged dog
lowers its head

Scribante writes 02/20/98

Gold Star! Immune to magic
Some toads simply die unchanged
By fair maid's kisses.

tavi{Hs} writes 02/19/98

His arms are power
she is coaxed out of herself
a girl yields to love

The poet comments, "dedicated to One Hellspont... the Master of the author.. with love.. "

Gold Star! passions bring delights
delights bring lustful rapture
rapture brings climax

The poet comments, " *impish wink*"

bodies crash like waves
flowing together as one
their love spilling forth

the slave girl dances
golden curves writhing
a pleasing vision

Robberto writes 02/19/98

Gold Star! Our embarrassments
And deeply felt awkwardness
Pale beside our gifts

IggySuePea writes 02/19/98

Chubby chick-a-dees
Roll and waddle in the breeze
Yellow balls of lint

Marc S. writes 02/19/98

Gold Star! the dark coffee -
how the clouds form and swirl
as i add the cream

Toast Point thinks it's especially cool when the coffee mug is clear glass and you don't stir - like watching galaxies form.

Joe Gill writes 02/19/98

The harsh taste of cold
The silence of dense snowfall
The wolves hunt; I hide

The poet comments, "A nightmare I had."

Clove writes 02/19/98

Son is coming home.
Her last dollar buys some paint
Front door smiles: "Welcome!"

Scribante writes 02/19/98

Something has changed
Since first we met, liked, loved, lied;
Is it you, or I?

Jeff Sell writes 02/19/98

Hot spam and cold duck
reminds me of New Years Eve
blowing pinkish chunks

David Chudzynski writes 02/19/98

White rhododendron
abuzz with one bumblebee
trembles the whole branch.

Rain-flattened oak leaves
merging autumn with concrete
shadows of themselves

Sergei Braun writes 02/18/98

Gold Star! River, white river,
bubbles gather under ice.
Life is running out.

Faint trace of her scent.
The breath of summer meadow
amidst the winter.

Wind shrieks syllables.
Each seventeen's a haiku.
Beware chilly draught.

Uma Madhu writes 02/18/98

why do we forget
we are just color coated
travelling star dust

The poet comments, "Thanks for helping me express this nagging thought in words!"

Glad we could help!

The Panther writes 02/18/98

A Black Flower

Diff'rent and alone,
like a black flower,
in an ocean of roses.

Bruce Calloway writes 02/18/98

In your eyes I see,
an ocean of emotions
Looking back at me.

Justin Carroll writes 02/18/98

Gold Star! snowflakes vying
with wind chimes
smell of wood smoke

Gold Star! that hole in the hedge
almost filled in this summer
abandoned tree house

A giant oak falls
underneath the rotting bark
pandemonium

Quicksilver beauty
Intricate filaments spun
A spider's deathtrap

Clouds in sarabandes
Sleeping turquoise-lacquered bridge
Fragrant lotus pond

Indian summer's glow
Tapestries of minuets
Brocaded leaf waltz

Empty nest, frantic
mother bird cries limb to limb
cat licks his whiskers

Robyn Harold writes 02/18/98

Cold vacant coccoon
wings unfurled reach toward the sun
grasping new freedom!

Marc S. writes 02/18/98

winter sun setting
lone pine on the snowy field
filters the red glow

Gold Star! a father's day card
gently placed on the tombstone
the boy turns and leaves

Robberto writes 02/17/98

Gold Star! this acorn's secret
shall be told to my grandson
when he's twice my age

DeVar writes 02/17/98

Resurrected heart
Discovers his sister soul
Middle age sweethearts

The poet comments, "Lesley and I are both 46 and have been married for a year. It has been wonderful!"

Congratulations!

Mild morning breezes
Triggered by sun's fresh rising
Tinkling wind chimes

Alcohol laughter
Neon light companionship
Phlegm-covered sidewalk

The poet comments, "The other evening I carefully walked past a tavern and these thoughts came to me."

Marc S. writes 02/17/98

shadows dance
a smoky fire
wood hissing

the soaking rain outside
-pat -pat -pat
drops striking the window

shaft of light
piercing the fog
horn sounds a warning

the old pond in summer
still water
heat making waves

on his back smiling
accepts his brother's strong hand
football lays nearby

the canopy of leaves
sun streaming through
summer breeze

Clove writes 02/17/98

Deep inside itself
The mountain holds its echo
So I hold your voice

Mary Joan Monahan writes 02/17/98

Icy winter winds
Whip the seas to frothy heights
Cleansing shores for spring.

Branches bow to earth
Drifting snows define earth's edge
Starlight paints the scene.

Joe Gill writes 02/17/98

Sweet scent of peaches
Memories etched in granite
Playing back for me

Vid Vukasovic writes 02/17/98

Gold Star! In the deep silence
Only one or two chirps
Then silence again

The poet comments, "It seemed that all cicadae were asleep and suddenly only one of them started chirping for several seconds before utter silence prevailed again. "

Angie Zamudio writes 02/17/98

Patterns in our lives
colors and shapes and sizes
Still we're different

Gold Star! Icicles, snow falling
My breath floating in the air
Oh yes, winter is here.

Gold Star! Moments ago, I
came upon a single thought
I miss you so much

David Chudzynski writes 02/17/98

Single flake falling
gentle twirling dance of down
focusing the day.

Red salmon jumping
from silver rushing waters
baptizing the air.

Eyes of swallowtail
suspended in spiderweb
weep morning dew drops.

Lostloon writes 02/16/98

Soft words, gentle truths
Shine through our separation
Common roots entwine

Jim Barnard writes 02/16/98

Gold Star! bare sycamores blaze
through misty morning hillsides.
cold lightening bolts

dry naked shoreline
resting from a raucous spring.
strong roots on display

never knew orange
had such weight until I stood
under a maple

Kit Cunningham writes 02/16/98

Gold Star! The kite hates its string,
That holds it down from heaven.
Love is not a trap.

The poet comments, "I love your website!"

Thank you!

Jason Christie writes 02/16/98

Said the Caterpillar to its Cocooned Mate

You'll be different
to me. I guess in some way
I will be the same.

Monique de Plume writes 02/16/98

Dead branch of white birch
A vase, a white-painted wall.
Winter in summer.

Robyn Harold writes 02/16/98

Gold Star! Crisp angel fingers
Outline the skeleton leaves
Autumn breathes, "first Frost."

Agustin Eastwood De Mello writes 02/15/98

Cats at my window
enchanting me with their song
winter night chorus

The poet comments, "I finally fall asleep dreaming of little kittens in the spring. "

Penny Merryfield writes 02/15/98

February hearts
Blushing pink to bluish hues
Oncoming March Winds

Ipsa writes 02/15/98

Embryonic dreams
So few will pass the censor
Patience is a gift.

Patience is an operetta.

Desi Grogan writes 02/14/98

The wind blows softly.
The light rain drums quietly.
Puddles begin to form.

The poet comments, " I hope you enjoy!! It's about a spring shower."

Nuskat. writes 02/14/98

A stone lies watching
Life in its entirety
Watching a stone lie

The poet comments, "Do you accept Storied Haiku?"

We accept any haiku. What is storied haiku?

Pruman writes 02/14/98

full moon night
frost-crusted soil
spent cartridges

The poet comments, "I hope you dont insist on the "holy seventeen" despite the entry form!"

The Convivial Codfish writes 02/13/98

Gold Star! blinds down, curtains drawn
watching prerecorded life
avoiding spring

DeVar writes 02/13/98

Gold Star! Missing the contest
The month nearly half over
Waiting by the screen

The poet comments, "What has happened to the contest?"

See above for a description of Toast Point's idiocy.

Joe Gill writes 02/13/98

Incessant deluge
Unfettered by forest hands
Taunts the quiet stream

Elizabeth Hunter writes 02/12/98

Gray rooftops reflect
The light of empty raindrops
In cold dead silence

CAVAC writes 02/11/98

Gold Star! drowning dregs do drip
carefully cradling cold cup
drinkers doubtful draft

no change this morning
to buy a brown-bag bottle
longing for relief

fun follows frisbee
skipping sun and scattered clouds
retriever knows joy

Marc S. writes 02/11/98

war blossoms
petals of youth
blowing away

Joan Monahan writes 02/11/98

Delicate blossoms
Creamy, fragrant, fill my senses.
And I remember.

The poet comments, "the warm winter has turned my thoughts to spring."

Albertog writes 02/11/98

Gold Star! yendo al trabajo
32 megas de ram
en mi cerebro

The poet comments, "Going to work
32 megas of ram
in my brain"

Professor Longhair writes 02/11/98

"dear abby,i caught..."
the phone rings again
i turn the page

Lucan writes 02/11/98

Branches branching out
Growing leaves to feel the air
To feel the sunshine

CAVAC writes 02/10/98

if brim stones be cast
into water-tight basket
supper gruel will cook

if brim stones be cast
into family basket
supper meal be done

dear break forest's edge
hunter masked in musk and firs
follows silently

Joanna Szeto writes 02/10/98

Gold Star! The dangling peach
Soft and juicy, out of reach
Reminds me of you.

Cara writes 02/09/98

i sleep on the moon
in a slimy old high chair
i awake to coo

the purple bruise shows
was it at midnight this time?
was it he again?

lions, tigers, and bears
dorothy is a chicken
lions, tigers, and bears

Richard writes 02/09/98

the silver bowl moon holds
the rain, but turning slowly
spills out the showers

Worldly Goods, God's Grace..
How to live well yet bring both
into one heart, one mind?

The poet comments, "Read Walter Von der Vogelweide. He did it better."

Dr. Prozac writes 02/09/98

Oh another year!
Wonder how many more left?
Retirement, closer!!

The poet comments, "WELL---I am 45, and the CUBS still haven't won a World Series.....%^)"

Happy Birthday, Doctor!

Marc S. writes 02/09/98

Gold Star! casket sinks
salty tears
mournful rain

Sergei Braun writes 02/07/98

Gold Star! Let me once again
lay out my gold for autumn,
silver for the snow...

In the sleepless room,
Only your eyes shed warm light.
February night.

Gold Star! Timid quilt of snow
lured by the call of abyss.
Roaring avalanche.

Lostloon writes 02/07/98

February lake
Profile in hard-headedness
Mimics shuttered pane

SSSlye writes 02/06/98

Melting icicles
In seventeen syllables
Evokes discipline.

EBJ writes 02/06/98

Nothing

A golden sun sets.
An eagle soars through darkness.
Pain, pleasure, freedom

Dinner

Heat lifts Eagle high
Salmon fight their mothers' bed
Sashimi sandbars

Breakfast

Run to the window
The blue heron stalks alone
Minnows minus one

Why?

Old soldier's lost war
Children listen carefully
One more life is gone

Circles

Gold Star! Death demands a life
As one begins its journey
Ad infinitum

CAVAC writes 02/06/98

the bad apple's plight
caught in Santa Ana Winds
snapping stem it falls

crashing thunder rolls
feeling no match for lightning
cloudburst drums the roof

boiling pot awaits
a plummeting of rice
cook watches sun set

boiling pot awaits
its pummeling of cold rice
dinner at sunset

clay snakes coil around
fashioning a bowl spirit
she must not capture

dark and cold as ice
shepherd gathering his sheep
longs to wear their heat

CJ writes 02/06/98

The Arctic Ocean
Was roaring very loudly
As it swallowed ships

Marc S. writes 02/06/98

fire burns in you
brightly, a beacon to souls
shrouded in darkness

The poet comments, "my first haiku...ever"

Gold Star! colored leaves rustle
nature's whispered promise,
"I shall wake once more"

The poet comments, "my second one..."

Savannah writes 02/05/98

Gold Star! On cool wooden shelves
Rows of vertical wisdom
Vast treasure of words

Red coat Winter thick
My child cheeks are wind-blushed rose
Eyelashes laced white

The poet comments, "My memories of snow..."

Juqetta Sheffield writes 02/05/98

oh the joy of school
books, professors, exams
makes life worth living

dreams keep us alive
a better me, you, us, we
no one is perfect.

Anonymous writes 02/05/98

dirty snowball lands
on the crescent face of earth
dinosaur's winter

CAVAC writes 02/05/98

Gold Star! cave behind sunlight
petroglyph pierced by the sun
marks summer's solstice

sun lighting rimrock
pushing colors past the sun
while setting in clouds

sun dagger dances
through the cave's solstice target
forgotten by man

the high noon drama
of a west that never was
now covered by dust

the cranky poet
held by gravity's large jaws
awaits the dream flight

love has turned to hate
lovers now distant and cold
icy rocks for hearts

CAVAC writes 02/04/98

electricity
replaces experience
orwell's lesson lost

Lostloon writes 02/04/98

Gold Star! Wavering resolve
Decision's stark precipice
Sirens sing from void

Jackie Westhoff writes 02/04/98

Rocking wooden comfort
Baby and mother cradle;
Sleep falls.

Anonymous writes 02/04/98

the grassy carpet
friendly and hospitable
walking with the sun

CAVAC writes 02/04/98

a lonely soldier
bent low to smell wild flowers
a brief happiness

the monsoon has struck
tiny shanty shakes while I
trade prose for poems

long line for short bus
the big rock-candy mountain
all seasons the same

Gold Star! concrete cornice creaks
window waits for weather's wane
winter wildly wings

our cries for reason
appreciate not nature
equivocal wild

I wave to my love
among the blue berries
quiet forest near

bees buzz overhead
sweet whippoorwill sings to the
cranberry bog lands

poetic whisper
swifty winging accoss pond
startles resting crane

one- legged crane stands
knee-deep in tepid mud
eying crystal-clear springs

Anonymous writes 02/04/98

beach blanket bingo
waves crashing spawning grunion
ham-handed haiku

The poet comments, "That was fun, kind of like haiku free association!"

CAVAC writes 02/04/98

haiku challenges
babylon's rising tower
earth all around us

mirror of image
casting light-speed reflections
from a cool dark pool

in her winter years
she reflects spring in her eyes
the fast flowing brook

too much energy
is bob, bob, bobbing along
the red, red robin

grey russet rocket
and she thinketh herself gaye
preening her cockade

The poet comments, "From John Skelton's poem "The Tunnyng of Elynour Rummyng", written before 1523. Little snippets of this poem are so nice to play with in a haiku-like form."

Ananya Sarkar writes 02/03/98

Rain beats on all roofs
Steady rhythm from the sky
Shards of flashing glass.

Brian, full of questions, writes 02/04/98

dancing on the edge
a thought frozen in the night
owls are free to fly

The poet comments, "What are owls? What is night? What is the nature of the edge?"

cool sky blue vision
silently through still water
fish swims in a cloud

The poet comments, "Where is the fish? Where is the cloud?"

cold wind swiftly bites
the cry of a lonely gull
heralds of a storm

The poet comments, "Is something bitten? What is haralded? Who are haralds?"

the undisturbed lake
during day reflects the sun
at night shows the moon

The poet comments, "Where is the sun to be found? Where the moon? Where is the lake?"

Joe Gill writes 02/03/98

Her eyes cage my soul
Her soul is my universe
And she is unknown

Darrell Broyles writes 02/02/98

World of Wonders
Evening Sky of Bright Lights
Experience the Moment

Joe Gill writes 02/02/98

Wag your furry tail
Hop up and down you rascal
Lets go for a walk!

Gold Star! May I cup your cheeks
To inhale your depression
Your anguish is mine

The Red Tail has sharp eyes
The pigeons are unaware
Smorgasbord in the City

Aref N. Dajani writes 02/02/98

Nineteen ninety-eight:
Nagano's glory unfurled:
Bronze, silver, and gold.

Joan Monahan writes 02/02/98

Life is sweeter still
When death has been averted
Sunbeams fill the heart.

The poet comments, "Thoughts of a grateful survivor."

Jennifer Thompson writes 02/01/98

Gold Star! Dry pampa grass speaks
In forgotten, earthen tongue.
Oh! I remember!


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