.
halloween takeout
a ghostly spined T-shirt boy
gets his mom to order
.

roadside pumpkins
in the grey morning light
a ferris wheel creaks



edited 12:54

.

devil's night
the fridge takes the hindmost
into my vigil

Devil's Night

hindmost link
.

on this eve
of All Souls --
some more restless than others



[happy halloween . . .]

autumns sky's shine bright
jewels of heaven lead the way
Cassiopeia,queen rules mirrored in light

autumn evening
enjoying that my front yard
is not a leaf vortex

coal tits chatter
in morse-code staccato
squirrels gather beech nuts

Colour coated tree
on a cultivated field
autumn journey

autumn rain
water heading back
to the lake

last rise reached
vista opens wide --

my breathing staggers like a fool

Autumn Leaves

beneath the oaks
I walk a bed of dead leaves -
crushed fired glass

Photo autumn leaves ground by pkirrage

.
night-tide
the startled rook calls out
a similar prayer to mine


The 1000 Verse Renga Project

solitary crow
perched on the bird table
cat won't walk past

at last!
sleep -
leaves off the sycamore tree

slow afternoon jaunt
enjoying the brisk air

A forest trail
dry leaves whisper
stillness

shrouded in mist
the cemetery ìs silent
three magpies saunter

silver light October moon stitches the sky

morning toilette-
shocked at how things have sagged
in the last year

equinox:
wind beats a drum
sunflowers lie drunkenly

On a moon  mirror                        
they slowly shed their dress,
Chinese-shadow trees
reflections of times past
the melancholy fall of leaves

. 

clouds form
as the wind shifts
chestnuts shiver

Sun rise
through dust-covered leaves:
sneezing

CHHAT HAIKU

Like them, the moon
impatient to bow to
the rising sun

CHHAT HAIKU

Offering the sun
obeisance in water--
chhat worshippers

CHHAT HAIKU

Waxing crescent
searches the setting sun
worshipped in water

soggy weekend
orange and red leaves
mound next to the curb

wind-blown dry leaves
skitter along the path
my new hat

warm scent rising
a rainbow at my feet -
Indian summer

hues of twilight draw near
just one last dance . . .

under sodium glare
the wind bends trees sideways
dry leaves skitter

It’s raining leaves
outside my window
hot feet on the radiator

you alone stand bare
amidst a row of chestnuts
dressed in sunlight

bright against the blue
in your upper branches -
a school of salmon

Red Roses By Her Cheek

pale white hands sweetly folded
red roses by her cheek
love has gone with summers end


rain against the window panes
weeps, weeps for such perfection
oh, please let her not lie in the dark


Autumn Haiku, Contemporary Haiku

amongst turning leaves
unseen blackbirds chatter
distant dogs bark

autumn rain
rushing into the runoff
red and gold leaves

burning leaves -
smoke
writhing

three magpies
pick at roadkill
next door's kid's point

Bridge of autumn leaves
crossing slow stream
from past to future

the thickness
of wetland bushes -
a jay's call in autumn morning

flicking back
the autumn sun -
dragonfly

midday break
single leaf falls next to me
and shares the bench

rowan tree
ablaze
...listening for God's voice

rain-soaked fence
turns green with mosses
boiler-outlet clouds

In perfect harmony
stone, water and flower
plastic water lily

I see myself
in fallen leaves
and drizzle

tree full
except where there isn't
that one leaf

autumn afternoon-
kids in short sleeves roll in leaves
during recess

dustmen come
before the day brightens
dawn chorus alarm

For the victims of the recent natural calamities specially in the Philippines and elsewhere around the world, I offer them my haiga above. Artwork is by Ashe Wood of England and is from my book, Rustle of bamboo leaves.

the sun today
reminds me what I had
and what's coming,
but will soon leave me
with a cold autumn night

butal day's end-
sinking onto the couch
with hot chocolate

shadows swim
just beneath the surface
memories of things left unsaid --

dogs strain on the lead
a collie trots across graves
filled with poplar leaves

.
very long day
a fox with Clooney's voice
says good night
.

slender hoops
bent birches
not easy to be caressed by snow and ice --


(we had a freak snowstorm yesterday -- October 18)

against a melon sky
curling in against the chill
last passion flower

hot tears again
after being passed over
when is it my turn?

yellows and brown
tint the sycamore trees
tulip bulbs are planted

Still a beauty
though autumn
aging

piles of leaves
on the bonfire
a curl of smoke

bomb site
rusty girders twisted
autumnal trees

tween night and dawns edge
silvery moon tides
sway twist bend
barren branches
in a soundless wind

cool night
sweet wood smoke rises
flickering shapes
take turns
crackle hiss

woven ice fairies
spin leap dance
singing
come come follow us
under the cold moon's glow

coming home
the roar of a distant
waterfall

Mainichi (Japan) Daily News
October 10, 2009

frost cuts deep
lacy ice patterns

scent of cedarwood
the sound of chainsaws
drowns the crows


(edited)

sex harassment
in office or elsewhere
no laughing matter

inflatable pool -
dead leaves
in and out

***

piscine gonflable -
des feuilles mortes
dedans et dehors

morning commute-
golden lab and its owner
romp in the rain

There’s no lawn
only autumn leaves
eyes width open

old factory
derelict with broken glass
late poppy blooms

stones in a pocket
the topography of dreams
I carry through the day --

miserable day
tracking my foul mood
needing a twinkie

the wind blows
leaves finally released
from clinging

poplar leaves
drifting over granite headstones
scarlet rosehips

crisp morning
my breath races me
to the car

this morning's birdsong --
tinged with frost

outside winds tug the last leaves
as I turn the page
of yet another report
wondering if any wine
is left in the fridge --

sunlight glints
through yellow leaves
chestnuts fall

in slips autumn
out from the faded green
a warming glow

honey gold autumn
lake ripples in the cool breeze
feline predator
chickadees raucous warning
feathers fly at the feeder

First Frost

first frost...
whipped cream melts
into my coffee

All the falling leaves
Carpet the unmown grasses
Nature's tapestry

Ron Eklof

a dusting of frost
the scent of coffee
on my fingers

on the darkest nights
the moon allures me
to gaze upon it for hours
and i try to forget
the emptiness of my life


Pamela A. Babusci
first pub. in American Tanka
& in: A Thousand Reasons

cool autumn day
double amputee aunt
tells me life is great

crows guard a grave
a breeze sends silk flowers
rolling over turf

two black skulls
on the door knocker
pink cherry blossoms

house of the skulls
withered cherry leaves
tremble

One macabre haiku from spring and a matching one for autumn

.
autumn showers
we discuss cutting scenes
with Anthony Head

haiku joint authors:
Alan Summers & Eylesa (Dashi Sushi staff member)

Anthony Head was in my local sushi bar (Platform 2, Bath Spa Railway Station) where we've previously held renga and haiku events. He was discussing Buffy, as well as the Sweeny Todd movie.

Buffy the Vampire Slayer's Watcher aka Rupert Giles aka Anthony Head:
http://buffy.wikia.com/wiki/Rupert_Giles

.

the reflection
of a still fan -
autumn's first leaves

children in the park
starlings congregate
at the chip shop

condensation
on the bedroom window
raindrops glisten

evening infusion -
the window of the kitchen
veiled of vapor


***

tisane du soir -
la vitre de la cuisine
voilée de vapeur

the river
smudged by mist and drizzle
dissolves into twilight

Breath

Doves coo, as
Jets overhead
Have captured gazes

My breath
Like seasons
Flew

I dread
the dark demons
that chase my dreams away
your touch is so real,
am I in love again?

withered gardens
like wet flesh -
a killing frost

hunched crows
stoop to feed -
claw the forest floor

Photo Crow 04 by yeimaya

crows roost
in yellow-leaves birches
squirrels scamper

in the blue above
two eagles
swoop and arc --
a recent death below

again, I find myself
on this river-side bench
in the rain
with no reason
to move on

Modern English Tanka V3 No4 Summer 2009

pine shavings curl
in the hand plane
mackerel sky

tea steams the window
backdraft leaves whirl
in the gutter



edited - thank you, Alan

pale pendulous moon
heavy with promise -
cold nights alone

frost on the hives
monks in their cells
meditating

wet leaves, limp, black
glistening -
a broken mirror


thanks diana

footsteps crunch
under yellowing beeches
spiky husks underfoot

*

a candle blush
caps the crystal dark sky
cracks the dawn

*

.
lifting me away
from the computer
to my kitchen window
the early morning honks
of migrating canada geese
.

I know now
why our embrace
was so tight
your last farewell
to fleeting life

migration
this unnamed flock
no less beautiful

sparrow song
the rustle of falling leaves
in Boythorpe wood

.
my new sister
even before the leaves turn
planning christmas

.

autumn morning -
racing cat
for the sunny chair

dismembered magpie
left on the cemetery path
horse chestnuts

CHILL

Full moon
yellowing leaves
autumn chill

summer fades
into memory
meandering leaves

sound of church bells
the songthrush bases a snail
against a stone

autumn wind-
dead leaves roll
down the sidewalk

.
boiling eggs
late brunch and a film
with a watchful fly
.
Buzz note:
If flies disappeared from the face of the earth the human race would follow in a matter of hours.
.

a clatter
as the wind gets up
next door's dustbin

a moorhen
crosses the pond
- rebounds


***

une poule d'étang
traverse l'étang
- ricochets

beneath a somber pine
bright turquoise '57 Chevy --
eye delight!

two trunks embracing
another leaf drops
from the plum tree

new wishes same stars


Pamela A. Babusci
pub. in Raw Nervz Haiku
many yrs ago

sky gazing
Big Dipper pouring
stars
upon
stars


Pamela A. Babusci
pub. in Persimmon
many yrs ago

dusk as i walk my shadow passes me


Pamela A. Babusci
previously pub.

me and my pregnant friend

worry that our tomatoes

will never ripen

dry leaves

hearing the blackbirds

in the shadows

Autumn Forest Ground

beneath the trees
a corrugated mat
of rusted leaves

Photo Autumn Forest Ground by elventear

mayflies
swarming in the last
rays of sunlight

birdsong
on the morning breeze
an aeroplane's drone

first really cool night
remembering what box
the blankets are in

rusty smell embedded
in my fingers --
dead-heading marigolds

autumn dew
bird seed sprouting
in the old feeder

a yellow leaf rocks
on a current of air
over the hard road

October 2008

vanilla ice cream
melting over the hot pie:
smiley faces


--R.K.SINGH

bright arum soldiers
standing guard beneath the shrubs
black cat squeezes past