April’s meeting

This month Sue Brown lead a Haiku workshop in which she also included Tankas and Cinquains.

 

Sue Brown
Workshop leader

About half of the eighteen of us present had never written in any of the forms so she began by explaining that in Japanese, Haikus are traditionally printed in a single vertical line, while in English they often appear in three lines to parallel the three phrases of Japanese Haiku, and consists of seventeen syllables. 5 on the first line, 7 on the second and 5 on the third. She also explained that while they were originally about nature, these days they have been used for other subjects.We all had a go at writing a Haiku, some of us more successfully than others. I have to confess that had it not been for the fact that we all had to read out what we’d written afterwards, I would have given up.  But Sue, in her gentle, coaxing way encouraged us to persevere and share.

She later encouraged us to try our hands at either a Tanka, five lines with the following syllables on each line: 5,7,5,8,7, and Cinquain. Again five lines with the following syllables 2,4,6,8,2.

Two of us have braved showing what we did. They are far from being the best, but until we receive some other contributions have a look at what Jude Ashworth  – Haiku (Member of the Month – January) and  Predencia Dixon  – Tanka (Member of the Month – April) wrote.

Haiku

life is a shambles

shambles brings an excitement

lifts dullness of life

Tanka:
Shadows disappear
in sunshine’s rainbow spotlight
waterfalls sparkle
through lagoons of crystal water
children play in happy bliss