Tag Archives: love

#100

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welcome to #100 of hedgerow! this issue celebrates all things ‘hedgerow’ & features hundred small pieces of poetry & art, some by poets that were in the very first issue! thank you so much for turning up week after week poets & artists, readers & supporters, without you this publication would not be thriving…

as promised, #100 is also available as a print copy! it can be purchased from the publisher at the link below —

https://wildflowerpoetrypress.wordpress.com/current-titles/

it is also available from amazon.

with this final issue of the year, i wish you all a happy & peaceful new year, hoping to hear from you all soon!

with love & kindness,

Caroline Skanne,
founding editor

hedgerow-100-edited-by-caroline-skanne

phonto-3

 

#88

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welcome to the latest issue of hedgerow. i hope you all enjoyed last week’s special feature. kids poetry & art will be a standing feature of hedgerow. more updates about how to submit to ‘kid’s corner’ coming soon! grateful to readers & contributors alike. we are currently trying out a new format, please click on the pdf link below to read this friday’s offerings…

hedgerow-88-edited-by-caroline-skanne

 

#86

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welcome to the last issue of hedgerow before the summer break. as always, grateful to contributors & readers alike. happy summer everyone!

 

please note —

submissions are now closed. you will be notified once submissions reopen, on our facebook page below. something special prepared for the first issue back… stay tuned!

https://www.facebook.com/hedgerowpoems/

https://www.facebook.com/wildflowerpoetrypress/

 

with love & kindness,

caroline skanne
founding editor

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

sandbox castles
toddlers choose
not to wage war

.

boxed up
the weight
of my childhood

.

peeling apples
not a word about
their sweetness

Elmedin Kadric was born in Novi Pazar, Serbia, but writes out of Helsingborg, Sweden. A student of both longer and shorter forms of poetry, and an avid observer of everything else.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

a nodule
appears on the trunk
of a healthy tree …
the touch of her hand
up and down his back

.

saying nothing
we walk hand in hand …
silence stolen
by the crunch of footsteps
on a frost-covered trail

Susan Constable lives on the west coast of Canada, where she’s been writing haiku and tanka for the past ten years. She was the tanka editor from 2012-2016 for the online journal, A Hundred Gourds.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

no longer sure
of who I am
shifting sands

.

insomnia
looking into the darkness
of time

Rachel Sutcliffe, from Yorkshire, UK, has suffered from a serious immune disorder for the past 15 years, throughout this time writing has been her therapy, it’s what keeps her from going insane!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

heron pose how flexible the bending river

Elizabeth Alford is a magna cum laude graduate of California State University, East Bay (B.A. English, 2014). She currently lives in Hayward, California, is an amateur photographer, and spends most of her time writing Japanese short forms. Follow her poetry adventures @ http://www.facebook.com/ElizabethAlfordPoetry

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Bougainvillea_Ballerina.jpg

Dove_1.png

Red_peacock.png

Subhashini is a poet, artist and gardener. Her poetry book, “From the Anklets of a Homemaker” was published in 2013. She posts her art on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook as @neelavanam which means the “blue sky.” http://bluesky-gardenart.tumblr.com

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

My new jade Buddha
Small enough for my pocket
Big enough for luck

Stacey Crawford Murphy likes having short thoughts, especially when they turn into poems. She enjoys life in Ithaca NY with family and most of her other favorite people.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

a bit rusty squeak of his grandkids swinging

.

community yardsale
the clutter
we’ve kept inside

.

freezing moon
a caged dog’s howl
lets out all i’ve repressed

Matthew Moffett lives in Mt. Pleasant, Michigan, with his wife, two kids, and a Shetland sheepdog. He thanks you for reading his poems!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

my tongue tastes
the saltiness of you
this need I have
for water
when you are gone

Lynda Monahan is a Canadian poet living in the Nesbit Forest of north central Saskatchewan. She is the author of three poetry collections. Her latest book, Verge, was published in spring of 2015.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Taste of Summer

fever point
the taste of summer
twilight

ghost peppers hanging
in crowded clusters

food trucks
at the farmers’ market
so many recipes using kale

community garden –
the tomato worm eats
more than his share

the toddler’s first radish –
puckering up

expanding horizons –
she brings home
a vegan

Angela Terry (Washington) and Julie Warther (Ohio) met at a Haiku North America Conference five years ago where they attended a workshop on writing rengay, a six verse collaborative poem.  They’ve been writing together via email ever since.  Both are regional coordinators for the Haiku Society of America (hsa-haiku.org)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

summer dinner
after the last guest
feet on table

Aparna Pathak is freelance writer from Gurugram, India.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

shifting shadows
of oak leaves in the wind
– the bog turtle’s eyes

Mike Andrelczyk is currently living in Strasburg, PA. Also lived in Los Angeles, Ca. and Lewes, De. He likes writing haiku about the ocean, potatoes, moons, plants – mostly little things except the ocean which is huge, and the moon which looks little but isn’t. Follow on Twitter @MikeAndrelczyk.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

summer rain
finally I am all
cried out

.

white lilies
the empty pet bed
in the corner

.

desert rain
our footprints
washed away

Christina Sng writes haiku to immerse in nature amid life in the city. She finds joy in gardening, birdsong, and sakura tea. Find her at christinasng.com.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

©2011 rain patterns 1.jpg

For nearly thirty years Rick Daddario of 19 Planets has lived on a rock in the middle of the Pacific Pond—Kailua, Oahu Hawaii USA. As a visual artist he plays with words in Haiku and Related Forms.

http://rickdaddario.com
http://19planets.wordpress.com/
http://www.blurb.com/books/3879621-this-is-not-that-they-are-just-connected

 

 

 

 

 

 

#85

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welcome to #85 of hedgerow. this week features art by Debbie Strange. you can visit her blog here — http://www.debbiemstrange.blogspot.ca/. as always, grateful to contributors & readers alike. enjoy!

 

please note —

submissions are now closed, as hedgerow is taking a summer break after #86 (15th July). you will be notified once submissions reopen, on our facebook page below!

 

https://www.facebook.com/hedgerowpoems/

https://www.facebook.com/wildflowerpoetrypress/

 

with love & kindness,

caroline skanne
founding editor

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

the distance
of the harrier’s cry
withered moor

.

freeing itself
of itself
the thawing stream

.

mayfly
rippling
stars 

Paul Chambers is a haiku author from Newport, South Wales. His work can be viewed at www.paulchambershaiku.com

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Torn Petals.jpg

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

fluffy white cloud
our old cat
is gone

Ben Moeller-Gaa is the author of two haiku chapbooks, the Pushcart nominated Wasp Shadows (Folded Word Press 2014) and Blowing on a Hot Soup Spoon (poor metaphor design 2014). Learn more about Ben at www.benmoellergaa.com.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

protection
this rune resembles a tree
arms lifted up
to the maddening sky…I raise
my arms and dance with myself

transformation
rune like mountain peaks
daring us
to leap like warriors
ready to crash or fly

gateway rune
like a deer among woods
meditating
on the space “between
heaven and mundane”

Carole Johnston lives in her imagination most of the time, but sometimes, she lives in Lexington, Kentucky. She writes short poems every day and has published two books of poetry: “Journeys-Getting Lost” and “Manic Dawn.”

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Folding Unfolding_1.jpg

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

sand dunes
the deepening creases
in my skin

.

wind chimes
the fledgling’s
first flight

Christina Sng writes haiku to immerse in nature amid life in the city. She finds joy in gardening, birdsong, and sakura tea. Find her at christinasng.com.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

long road trip…
reaching the dead end
of our relationship

Debbi Antebi (@debbisland) exhales oxygen while writing poems. She lives in Istanbul, Turkey, with her husband and books.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Sunrise_1.jpg

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

roar of chainsaws
the green man
sobs

Pat Davis lives in Pembroke, New Hampshire, USA.  She enjoys her family, reading, writing, painting, and going places with her husband.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

parked bulldozer
a field of daises
overtakes the blade

.

“RV/ Camping”
black snags poke
out of a swamp

.

no scarves, no pipes
since when did the snowmen
quit smoking?

Richard Stevenson, Nanaimo, BC, Canada

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

winter moon
a coat of mismatched buttons
left on the curb

Nika is the pen name of Jim Force. He has published two chapbooks: frogs singing (1993) and snail my friend (2015). Nika lives in Victoria BC where he writes with The Heron’s Quill. He is a member of Haiku Arbutus as well as Haiku Canada.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

for fifteen years
my mother walks back
through time
returning at the end
to where it all began

Susan Constable lives on the west coast of Canada, where she’s been writing haiku and tanka for the past ten years. She was the tanka editor from 2012-2016 for the online journal, A Hundred Gourds.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Summer Storm.jpg

 

 

the art in this issue was brought to you  by Debbie Strange. you can read more about her here — http://www.hedgerowpoems.wordpress.com/poet-artist-in-conversation/

 

 

publication credits —

 

Debbie Strange – torn petals – Failed Haiku, May 2016

Debbie Strange – folding unfolding – brass bell, September 2015

Debbie Strange – sunrise sunflower – brass bell, November 2015

Debbie Strange – summer storm – Frameless Sky, June 2015

 

#84

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welcome to #84 of hedgerow. this week features haiga & photographs by Chase Gagnon. grateful to contributors & readers alike, thank you all for being here… enjoy!

please note —

submissions are now closed, as hedgerow is taking a summer break after #86 (15th July). you will be notified once submissions reopen, on our facebook page below.

 

http://www.facebook.com/hedgerowpoems/

http://www.facebook.com/wildflowerpoetrypress/

 

with love & kindness,

caroline skanne
founding editor

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

tuning the fiddle
to the guitar
on an iphone

.

rising
with the delta kite
my inner child’s laughter

Ben Moeller-Gaa is the author of two haiku chapbooks, the Pushcart nominated Wasp Shadows (Folded Word Press 2014) and Blowing on a Hot Soup Spoon (poor metaphor design 2014). Learn more about Ben at www.benmoellergaa.com.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 
wet leaves –
memory of “Wildwood Flower”
on Dad’s harmonica

A classical musician and public radio broadcaster, producer, and blogger, Jennifer Hambrick lives in Columbus, Ohio, USA.  Visit her on Facebook, or on Twitter at @JenHambrick.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 
Dawn

Blind since birth,
the old man says
he’s seen thirty
thousand sunrises.

They were described to him
far better than folklore
by peals of birdsong
through his open window.

Ben Banyard lives in Portishead, UK. His debut pamphlet, Communing, was published by Indigo Dreams in February 2016. Ben edits Clear Poetry, a web journal dedicated to promoting accessible work by newcomers and old hands alike – https://clearpoetry.wordpress.com. Blog: https://benbanyard.wordpress.com

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

finding
that space within…
deep rock pool

.

seaweed
spills a hand
over rock
green threads on
dry reds

Christina Martin has always enjoyed writing and is inspired by nature and the beautiful surroundings of Pembrokeshire in West Wales where she lives with her husband.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

puddle.jpg

ghostriver.jpg

spraypaintheart.jpg

Chase Gagnon is an amateur photographer and poet living in Detroit, Michigan who enjoys long walks on the streets taking pictures of people and urban scenery.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

the scent
of burning sage
the sound
of low slow blues
– logs on the fire

I decide
to plant my grave
before I die
buttercups, cow parsley
forget-me-nots

walking around
in the long grass
at end of day
the circle
completes itself

sitting quietly
in the meadow
watching
small field mice
gathering seeds

After decades of living in the States and Canada, Joy McCall now lives in her birthplace of Norwich, England, growing older but not much wiser.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

notes of
       a meadow’s song
             down the page
   cabbage whites

Julie Warther (@JulieWarther) lives in Ohio and serves as Midwest Regional Coordinator for the Haiku Society of America. (http://www.hsa-haiku.org)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

what keeps me here
in this place I don’t belong?
rolling green hills
endless wild flower sky
solitude of country roads

.

four a.m.
owl at the window rattles
me awake
is this a warning or
a call to adventure?

Carole Johnston lives in her imagination most of the time, but sometimes, she lives in Lexington,Kentucky. She writes short poems every day and has published two books of poetry: “Journeys-Getting Lost” and “Manic Dawn.”

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

night train
a whistle sounds
from the toy box

.

prairie sky
the wide view
of childhood

Dave Read is a Canadian poet.  His work can be found on his blog, davereadpoetry.blogspot.ca.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

#82

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welcome to #82 of hedgerow. thrilled to announce the launch of the latest wildflower poetry press title — ‘between here and home a lifetime’ by Mike Keville. for further information, the link below will take you to wildflower poetry press.

this week features artwork by resident artist Debbie Strange. as always, grateful to contributors & readers alike.

 

with love & kindness,

 

caroline skanne
founding editor

 

https://wildflowerpoetrypress.wordpress.com/current-titles/

 

SONY DSC

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

ocean stars
the sound
of no shore

Paul Chambers is a haiku author from Newport, South Wales. His work can be viewed at www.paulchambershaiku.com

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

In the Hills.jpg

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

passing clouds
the silence of shadows
between us

.

another year gone
your mug
on the shelf

Rachel Sutcliffe, from Yorkshire, UK, has suffered from a serious immune disorder for the past 15 years, throughout this time writing has been her therapy, it’s what keeps her from going insane!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Midnight Sun.jpg

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

200 miles . . .
this plum blossom
on my windshield

Julie Warther (@JulieWarther) lives in Dover, Ohio and serves as Midwest Regional Coordinator for the Haiku Society of America. (www.hsa-haiku.org)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

chrysanthemums —
flower girl tells me
the price has jumped

Emmanuel Jessie Kalusian is a young haijin from Nigeria. He began writing haiku in 2012. He is the co-founder of Africa Haiku Network.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

gardenias…
my hands filling
with yours

Elizabeth Alford is a magna cum laude graduate of California State University, East Bay (B.A. English, 2014). She lives in Hayward, California and co-hosts the reading group Poetry Express, based in Berkeley. http://www.facebook.com/ElizabethAlfordPoetry

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

lightning streaks
our paradise
cracked open

Alegria Imperial, writes all forms of Japanese short poetry, as well as, mainstream poetry. She lives in Vancouver, BC, Canada, where she immigrated from Manila, Philippines, ten years ago.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

the sweater.jpg

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

declining
the wedding invitation–
chipped conch shell

 

in the midst of darkness a resurrection fern

 

buttercups
the gentle grip of
childhood hands

 

between friends the swoop of a swallow

 

cold rain
a robin
robes its wings

 

eye of dawn please don’t airbrush

 

bad mood
a thunderstorm nears
the rapeseed field

Meik Blöttenberger was born in Baltimore to German immigrant parents. He is currently living in Hanover, Pennsylvania and in a decade will be retiring to the high desert of Arizona. His other passions are photography and traveling.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

You Made Me.jpg

 

the art in this issue was brought to you by Debbie Strange —

https://hedgerowpoems.wordpress.com/poet-artist-in-conversation/

http://www.debbiemstrange.blogspot.ca/

 

 

 

 

 

 

publication credits —

the poems by Debbie Strange have previously appeared  here —

in the hills & midnight sun – cattails, May 2016

the sweater – Undertow Tanka Review, Issue 7, 2015

you made me – The Bamboo Hut, Volume 2, Issue 1, 2014

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

#81

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welcome to #81 of hedgerow! this week features collages by J.I. Kleinberg. as always, grateful to contributors & readers alike. enjoy…

 

with love & kindness,

 

caroline skanne
founding editor

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

the candle and i
neither of us
in a hurry
 

the silence of the chair
before she arrives
to claim it

Zee Zahava lives in Ithaca, New York

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

under the cedar tree
he reads Rumi to his love
while overhead
a lone goose flies
crying for his mate
 

tall grasses
moving slow
in the wind
he says a benediction
under the ancient oak
 

she climbs
thirsty and tired
and finds again
the spring
rising from the rock

After decades of living in the States and Canada, Joy McCall now lives in her birthplace of Norwich, England, growing older but not much wiser.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

J.I. Kleinberg - NOW is NOW.jpg

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

deep breath
my poem
my own

Margaret Jones resides in Wisconsin, USA.  She enjoys walking in the woods, binoculars in one hand and haiku notebook in the other.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

face to face …
the inquisitive hover
of a bumblebee

Julie Bloss Kelsey lives in Germantown, Maryland with her husband and three children. She enjoys writing short form poetry, crafting, and drinking decaf iced lattes. Visit her on Twitter (@MamaJoules).

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

J.I. Kleinberg - struck by sap.jpg

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

we’d hide and seek
he’d stop and call “Gramma?”
… memories of little boy smiles
on the lips
of summer days

Nancy Cross Dunham lives in Madison, Wisconsin, with her husband, Michael.  Retired from the University of Wisconsin, she now writes poetry to try to figure out what she’s learned about herself, the world and the other people in it.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Sartor

It’s hard to be sophisticated when depressed,
cufflinks, like top buttons, are a major challenge,
shoe-laces resist residual logic, only on
cruises are partings as wavy as mine,
eye contact is the least of worries when there’s
the heavy shab of my shoulders to take in,
the tumbleweed beard, trousers that might be pajamas,
yesterday’s shirt today, little bursts of aesthetic mayhem
heralding divestment from the self.

A former British diplomat, Daniel Roy Connelly has worked around the globe. He has acted in and directed theatre in America, the UK, Italy and China, where his 2009 production of David Henry Hwang’s M Butterfly was forced to close by the Chinese secret police. He is a professor of creative writing, English and theatre at John Cabot University and The American University of Rome.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

BLUE NOTE

the blue note
lingers
shaping the darkness
of another night
without you

the cold wind
sings
she’s gone
she’s gone
she’s gone *

piled high
in this valley
of sorrow
broken promises
empty dreams

* ‘she’s gone’ is a blues song by Hound Dog Taylor

Paul Smith is a poet from Worcester in the UK. Alongside poetry Paul enjoys Japanese style ink painting, building cigar box guitars and playing old time blues.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

J.I. Kleinberg - within the eagle.jpg

the collages in this issue was brought to you by J.I. Kleinberg —

Bellingham, Washington, freelance writer, artist and poet J.I. Kleinberg works and plays with words. Her found-word collages, from a growing series of over 1,100, explore the accidental syntax of unintentional phrases. She doesn’t own a television and spends a lot of time tearing paper.