3rd Polish International Haiku Competition 2013
JUDGE’S GENERAL COMMENTARY
George Swede: I am honoured to be the judge for this competition, especially since it is based in Poland, a nation rich with achievements in the arts and sciences. Particularly meaningful is that Poland has had two recipients for the Nobel Prize in Literature for Poetry—Czesław Miłosz (1980) and Wisława Szymborska (1996). Only three other countries have had more winners in poetry (Sweden 5, Italy and Spain, 3). A significant moment for me was when Czesław Miłosz requested four of my pieces for Haiku, an anthology he edited of classical Japanese and contemporary English haiku published by Znak in 1992. Also, a book I edited—the Canadian Haiku Anthology (Three Trees Press, 1979) was translated into Polish by Ewa Tomaszewska—Antologia kanadyjskiego haiku (Wydawnictwo Miniatura, 1992). Naturally, I feel a strong bond with the Polish literary community. The submitted haiku were a pleasure to read. I have judged a number of contests and this group of entries was among the best.
WINNERS
(book prizes and diplomas):
1ST PLACE:
breaching whale
the time between
too soon and too late
Julie Warther
Dover, United States
George Swede: The second and third lines caught me off-guard. They resulted in the kind of surprise we treasure in poetry—the unexpected followed by enlightenment. But, what precisely is “between too soon and too late?” It is something we can only endlessly wonder about, never knowing for sure.
2ND PLACE:
august mist
the magnificence
of thought
Ernest J Berry
Blenheim, New Zealand
George Swede: The juxtaposition of mist with thought is not new. And, the use of a descriptor such as, “magnificence,” usually detracts from a poem because it tells the reader what to think. Not in this case, however. It made me wonder why thought is magnificent and then the answer materialized. The mist, that obscured the outside world, made the author turn inwards and recognize the tremendous gift we have.
3RD PLACE:
street musician
the winter cold passes through
his accordion
Bouwe Brouwer
Emmeloord, Netherlands
George Swede: For me, an accordion evokes lively music that creates a warm feeling. Yet, no matter how pleasant a sound the air makes travelling through the instrument, nothing really changes the reality of the cold and the player’s poverty—a haunting blend of images.
COMMENDATIONS
(in alphabetical order by haiku)
(diplomas)
daylight kiss
in all the crowd
just you and me
Mihail Buraga
Bucuresti, Romania
===
first thaw—
a hawk leans further
toward its target
Seren Fargo
Bellingham, United States
===
grey rainy day
she polishes silverware
third time round
Niiko Jesensky
London, United Kingdom
===
late strawberries—
the story of how he saved me
gets a bit longer
Sandra Simpson
Tauranga, New Zealand
===
lost for words
exploring blank paper
a fly
Kevin Goldstein-Jackson
Poole, United Kingdom
===
migrating birds—
I leave a note for her
on the fridge
Daniel Richard
Millom, United Kingdom
===
mountain long before i was an idea
Dietmar Tauchner
Puchberg, Austria
===
our first date
the redness
of maple leaves
Andrea Cecon
Cividale del Friuli, Italy
===
season’s end
the colours of rust
in a scrap yard
Jan Dobb
Canberra, Australia
===
twilight
helping mother take
baby steps
Yesha Shah
Surat, India
SUMMARY
Congratulations to the winners and commended haiku poets on your superb poems!
The third edition of the Polish International Haiku Competition has gathered 369 authors from 47 countries: Australia (13), Austria (1), Belgium (2), Bosnia and Herzegovina (6), Bulgaria (5), Burma (1), Canada (6), China (3), Colombia (1), Croatia (27), Czech Republic (2), Finland (1), France (2), Germany (11), Ghana (1), Greece (1), Hungary (2), India (22), Indonesia (1), Iran (1), Ireland (1), Israel (1), Italy (5), Japan (4), Kuwait (1), Lithuania (4), Macedonia (1), Malaysia (3), Mongolia (2), Nepal (1), Netherlands (2), New Zealand (11), Nigeria (1), Oman (1), Philippines (6), Poland (101), Romania (18), Russia (3), Serbia (16), Slovenia (3), Sweden (2), Switzerland (2), Trinidad and Tobago (1), Tunisia (1), Ukraine (2), United Kingdom (19), United States (48).
We thank you all for the constantly growing interest and invite everyone to participate in the fourth edition, which will start in August 2014.
The organizers would like to express their gratitude to George Swede for all the help, support and time devoted to the competition. He also generously funded all the book prizes with his personal signature: Joy in Me Still (1st Prize), embryo: eye poems (2nd Prize), First Light, First Shadows (3rd Prize).
The haiku which were not mentioned in the above results can be reused by their authors in any way.
The Polish translation of all the poems and comments — Rafał Zabratyński.
With kind regards — The Team:
George Swede, Final Judge
Rafał Zabratyński, Pre-Selector
Krzysztof Kokot, Coordinator