Brocade of Leaves

The Haiku North America conference took place at the Dalton School in New York City in 2003. From the introduction: “We know from experience—or at least from a dictionary—that a brocade is a rich silk fabric, often Oriental, with gold and silver patterns. In this book, we are presented with a vibrant brocade of voices, haiku and senryu serving as the gold and silver. These poems spring not just from the Orient, where haiku began, but from poetry weavers from across the United States and Canada, as well as other countries. And this brocade . . . is not just a brocade of silk, but a brocade of leaves, reminding us that nature is central to haiku and related genres of poetry.” The following are sixteen sample poems from the book. See also the Press Here page for this book.

circling Ground Zero

a ring of sequoias

but then I wake up

Brenda J. Gannam

Brooklyn, New York

late for work . . .

the cat’s muddy paw print

on my collar

Brian Tasker

Frome, Somerset, England

heavy snowfall

the Brooklyn Bridge

cancelled

Bruce Kennedy

Brooklyn, New York

another autumn

the tailor shop I wrote about

is gone

Cor van den Heuvel

New York, New York

above the park wall

the flags of a parade

going past

Doris Heitmeyer

New York, New York

apple pie

what more needs to be said

about my childhood

Jerry Kilbride

Sacramento, California

late to watch the deciding game

the full moon

Marshall Hryciuk

Toronto, Ontario

spring thaw—

the old scarecrow

a little taller

Michael Dylan Welch

Sammamish, Washington

brocade of leaves . . .

a monk sweeps a path

for the guests

Pamela A. Babusci

Rochester, New York

the wee hours

a quartered apple

browns

Pamela Miller Ness

New York, New York

old punk song . . .

I pump my fist

in the gardening glove

Paul Pfleuger, Jr.

Brooklyn, New York

The cliff’s dirt edge

An eroded

sense of self

Regina Weinreich

New York, New York

old jazz record—

a scratch

improvises

Stanford M. Forrester

Wethersfield, Connecticut

chrysalis

the old-timer’s

rapt attention

Tom Painting

Rochester, New York

spring rain

rereading my own book

I fall asleep

William J. Higginson

Summit, New Jersey

confluence

a marsh reed sways

with a blackbird

Yu Chang

Schenectady, New York