Carpe Diem's Tan Renga Challenge #12, Southard's "the swing of the gate".

Dear Haijin, visitors and travelers,

Time flies, another week has gone by and I have to prepare a new Tan Renga Challenge for you all. As I can recall I have asked a few of you if I may use their haiku for the new Tan Renga Challenge, but (feeling ashamed) I don't know any more whom I have asked. So if it was you please let me know, so I can (with your permission of course) use your haiku in a later episode of our Tan Renga Challenge.

Mabson O. Southard, our featured haiku-poet for September

For this weeks Tan Renga Challenge I have chosen a haiku by our featured haiku-poet of September, Mabson O. Southard (1911-2000) a modern haiku-poet with a special love for the classical 5-7-5 syllable-structure. So this Tan Renga Challenge is a bit different then the other episodes of the Tan Renga Challenge. The second stanza (7-7) has to be real (classical) 7-7, not easy I think, but we have to try.

Here is the haiku by Southard which is the first stanza of this weeks Tan Renga:

Just the cellarpit;
only the catbird recalls
the swing of the gate.

The goal of this Tan Renga Challenge is to write the second stanza (7-7) by associating on the first stanza. As I said earlier in this post 'this time it's, because of Southard, to write a real 7-7 stanza'. My attempt to write a second stanza for this Tan Renga:

First stanza (5-7-5):

Just the cellarpit;
only the catbird recalls
the swing of the gate                                                    (Southard)

Second stanza (7-7):

the squeak of the backyard gate
breaking the spring night's silence                              (Chèvrefeuille)

To complete this Tan Renga with the correct number of syllables I had to use a syllable-counter program, because I am not familiar with the syllable-sules of the English language. With thanks to Mark M. Redfearn who helped me to re-vise the first version.

I hope you like this Tan Renga Challenge and I am looking forward to the completion of you all. This Tan Renga Challenge will stay on 'till September 6th 11.59 AM (CET) and I hope to publish the new Tan Renga Challenge later on that day.
For now ... have fun, pick up the Challenge, be inspired and share your completion of the Tan Renga (by copy and paste the first stanza) and your second stanza with us all here at Carpe Diem.