(2024) Contest Results
Fleeting Words Tanka AHA Haiku
Fleeting Words Tanka Contest, May, 2024 - Results
It has been an honour to convene the Fleeting Words Tanka Contest. I was delighted to receive 543 entries, a diverse collection of tanka from across the globe, including the following countries, Australia, Belgium, Brazil, Canada, Croatia, France, Germany, Ghana, Guyana, Iran, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Pakistan, Philippines, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Serbia, Singapore, South Korea, Switzerland, the United Kingdom, and the United States. A special thank you to friends on social media who distributed our competition flyer via their Facebook pages and posted our competition details on their personal Web pages.It has been a pleasure to work with an’ya the contest judge. Thank you to all entrants for trusting me with their tanka.--Marilyn Humbert
It also has been my honour to judge this Fleeting Words Tanka contest and work with our coordinator Marilyn Humbert. Thanks to her for making the contest run smoothly, and to peterB for keeping the website working. Thank you also to everyone who entered in support of our combined efforts.
FIRST PLACE
waxwing winterall my unsent lettersin a wooden boxwrapped in shadowshow you touch me still
C.X. Turner, UK
This lovely tanka by C.X. Turner from the UK was always at the top of my shortlist. The consistent “w” sounds are a rare plus. The opening line “waxwing winter” sets the stage and the closing line “how you touch me still” completes the tanka in a poetic manner that leaves readers on an up note and yet gives us closure. With that last word “still”, those letters will stay in a box, the reader’s mind, and the poet’s heart forever.
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SECOND PLACE
unopened coneson silvered jack pinesat rest untilthe fire’s passion givestheir seed to the wind
Debbie Strange, Canada
Yet another fine tanka by Debbie Strange of Canada takes a strong second place. In judging this contest I looked for “waka-like” entries and hers was a definite winner. The first line “unopened cones” rather than just saying “pine cones” caught my attention. Debbie has a way of turning her tanka in line 3 and skillfully completing it in the final line.
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THIRD PLACE
wind-swept hill—the smell of summer rainrises with birdsong,the brooding thundercloudsseem suddenly far afield
Benjamin Bläsi, Switzerland
For third place, this tanka by Benjamin Bläsi from Switzerland has multiple images that he manages to tie together nicely The key lines are 4 and 5; “brooding” is an excellent way to describe the thunderclouds, and “far afield” with the “f” sounds combined with short and long “a” sounds creates a dramatic close.
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HONORABLE MENTION
surreal colorsas I look upwardholding your handthe Northern Lights dazzlelike the thousand hues of love
Darrell Lindsey , USA
An Honorable Mention tanka by Darrell Lindsey of the USA that shows us a dazzling array of “Northern Lights” Darrel’s last line with the words “the thousand hues of love” gives this tanka its romantic touch.
It also has been my honour to judge this Fleeting Words Tanka contest and work with our coordinator Marilyn Humbert. Thanks to her for making the contest run smoothly, and to peterB for keeping the website working. Thank you also to everyone who entered in support of our combined efforts.
FIRST PLACE
waxwing winterall my unsent lettersin a wooden boxwrapped in shadowshow you touch me still
C.X. Turner, UK
This lovely tanka by C.X. Turner from the UK was always at the top of my shortlist. The consistent “w” sounds are a rare plus. The opening line “waxwing winter” sets the stage and the closing line “how you touch me still” completes the tanka in a poetic manner that leaves readers on an up note and yet gives us closure. With that last word “still”, those letters will stay in a box, the reader’s mind, and the poet’s heart forever.
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SECOND PLACE
unopened coneson silvered jack pinesat rest untilthe fire’s passion givestheir seed to the wind
Debbie Strange, Canada
Yet another fine tanka by Debbie Strange of Canada takes a strong second place. In judging this contest I looked for “waka-like” entries and hers was a definite winner. The first line “unopened cones” rather than just saying “pine cones” caught my attention. Debbie has a way of turning her tanka in line 3 and skillfully completing it in the final line.
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THIRD PLACE
wind-swept hill—the smell of summer rainrises with birdsong,the brooding thundercloudsseem suddenly far afield
Benjamin Bläsi, Switzerland
For third place, this tanka by Benjamin Bläsi from Switzerland has multiple images that he manages to tie together nicely The key lines are 4 and 5; “brooding” is an excellent way to describe the thunderclouds, and “far afield” with the “f” sounds combined with short and long “a” sounds creates a dramatic close.
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HONORABLE MENTION
surreal colorsas I look upwardholding your handthe Northern Lights dazzlelike the thousand hues of love
Darrell Lindsey , USA
An Honorable Mention tanka by Darrell Lindsey of the USA that shows us a dazzling array of “Northern Lights” Darrel’s last line with the words “the thousand hues of love” gives this tanka its romantic touch.
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AHA Haiku Contest January 2024 Results:
Again, it has been an honour to convene the 2024 Hortensia Anderson AHA Haiku Awards (aha). A Total of 1124 entries received from across the globe including the following countries Azerbaijan, Australia, Belgium, Bharat, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Canada, Croatia, France, Ghana, Greenland, Germany, India, Ireland, Italy. Jamaica, Malaysia, Myanmar, Mexico, Nepal, The Netherlands, New Zealand, Nigeria, Pakistan, Philippines, Poland, Romania, Russia, Scotland, Slovakia, South Africa, South Korea, Switzerland, The Philippines, Turkey, UK, USA.
A special thank you to friends on social media who distributed our competition flyer via Facebook pages and posted our competition details on their personal Web pages. It has been a pleasure to work with an’ya and the contest judge peterB.- Marilyn Humbert, Contest Coordinator
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Judges Comments by peterB
Out of so many entries, this First Place haiku entered by Brad Bennett, I liked immediately. What grabbed my attention was that it ‘shows” us a happening without specifically “telling” us what actually created it. On a dark night, wind, rain and the tides steal the mornings clues, but with a calm bright overnight, we can now see two sets of flipper marks, going “from the sea and back” making this old sea turtle ritual easy to recall.
FIRST PLACE
moonrise...flipper marks from the sea and back
Brad BennettUSA
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What’s an ice flower? One is an actual “plant” the other a near-arctic nature phenomena. Window panes turn moisture into bizarre ice patterns, and empty window frames can have true “frost weed” that obscures the empty portal with frosty ice designs…you may have seen it and just never thought to write about it in juxtaposition with “lace curtains”.
SECOND PLACE
ice flowers –the abandoned house has lace curtains
Ana DrobotRomania
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In this Third Place haiku, a falling star episode certainly excites the senses, and breaks the visuals of an “orderly sky”. It also presents quite a unique perspective to a commonplace event. Thanks to the author for submitting this entry.
THIRD PLACE
sudden relieffrom an orderly skyfalling star
Lisa Anne JohnsonUSA
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Fresh hay lying where cut, or on the barn floor after stacking is both a great feedlot and playground for all the creatures, common sights like this are universal, memorable, and kitten-cute.
HONORABLE MENTION
fresh hay --kittens figure-eightingthe mare's legs
Julie Schwerin, USA
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NOTE: You can access the archives of earlier UHTS submissions, contests, and pages at https://theuhts.blogspot.com