Carpe Diem Tan Renga Challenge #89, Southard's "from deep in the spring"

Dear Haijin, visitors and travelers,

Today it's Friday and that means time for a new Carpe Diem Tan Renga Challenge. This week I have chosen a haiku by Mabson O. Southard. Not so long ago I ran through our CDHK history and I came along a featured haikupoet ... you will (maybe) understand which haiku poet I mean here ... yes Southard, he was our featured haiku poet in September 2013 and I remember that his haiku were awesome. While on that memory lane I thought to bring him again under your attention in a Tan Renga Challenge. So today he is once again at CDHK.

As you all know the goal of the Tan Renga Challenge is to complete the Tan Renga by writing th second (two lined, 7-7) stanza through associating on the images in the first (three lined) stanza or 'hokku'.

Here is the 'hokku' by Mabson O. Southard:

From deep in the spring
clear reflections rise to meet
 falling plum petals

© Mabson O. Southard

A wonderful haiku to start this Tan Renga with I think. There are in my opinion enough 'images' to associate on to write the 2nd stanza of approximately 7-7 syllables.

Here is my attempt:

From deep in the spring
clear reflections rise to meet
falling plum petals                   (Southard)

swiftly, swiftly, following Newton
plums falling one by one          (Chèvrefeuille)

Not as strong as I had hoped, but a nice completion I think.

This Carpe Diem Tan Renga Challenge is now open for your submissions and will remain open until,next Friday June 19th at noon (CET).

Carpe Diem Special #56, O. Mabson Southard's "releases the moon"

Dear Haijin, visitors and travelers,

Another week has gone by and today I love to share another nice haiku written by our featured haiku poet for this month, O. Mabson Southard. As you all know the goal of the Specials is to write a new haiku/senryu in the same tone, sense and spirit as the one given by the featured haiku poet. With the haiku by Southard there is another thing which you have to follow ... Southard wrote all his haiku in the classical 5-7-5 syllables-count, so your haiku has to follow that 5-7-5 syllables-count also, that makes it a little bit tougher I think and he uses punctuation also another thing to think about by writing you new haiku.

O. Mabson Southard

I have a wonderful haiku to share with you ...

In the garden pool,

dark and still, a steppingstone

releases the moon.

Isn't it a beauty? I love this imagery of the garden pool in which the moon is reflected on the wet steppingstones ... really an awesome picture I see in front of my eyes. To write another haiku in the same sense, tone and spirit will not be easy ... not least by using the 5-7-5 syllables count, because that's not 'my cup of tea'.

dragonfly guides me -

moonlighted steppingstones
laying ahead of me

This Special prompt will stay on 'till September 10th 11.59 AM (CET) and I will post our next episode, Kiri hitoha (one Pawlonia leaf, arrival of autumn), later on today around 7.00 PM (CET) !! This Special episode is open for submissions at 7.00 PM (CET) !!

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.